All the best: the growth sector of the healthcare industry
The healthcare industry is an important driving force in regional economic and structural development in Main Franconia. Analyses from the Prognos Zukunftsatlas® regularly attest to its important macroeconomic role for Main Franconia as a key growth industry in the region: alongside automotive and mechanical engineering, the healthcare industry is Main Franconia’s second core area of expertise with a high proportion of employees.
The term “healthcare industry” covers a wide range of sectors. In addition to the core area, i.e. outpatient and inpatient medical care including rehabilitation, pharmacies and administration, it also includes the intermediate and supplier industries, in particular the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology, medical technology, laboratory diagnostics, trade in health products and the health trade as well as adjacent industry sectors such as health tourism with the topics of prevention, fitness and wellness.
With the exception of the classic pharmaceutical industry, all sectors of the healthcare industry are represented in Main Franconia. In the core area, the treatment fields cover all indications of modern acute and rehabilitative medicine. In total, this growth industry already provides more than 50,000 jobs. The healthcare industry in the region is particularly concentrated in the university locations of Würzburg and Schweinfurt as well as in the northern part of the region, Bäderland Bayerische Rhön with its long tradition in the convalescence and spa industry.
As a highly dynamic business and science location, Würzburg is characterised by the excellent reputation of its universities. Especially in the fields of life sciences and medicine, the Julius-Maximilians-Universität is one of the most successful universities in Germany. This research competence is ideally complemented by cutting-edge medical care at the University Hospital, which, with its modern facilities such as the centres for internal medicine and surgical medicine, acts as an important maximum care provider for the entire region. The Würzburg-Schweinfurt University of Applied Sciences offers research and education in the field of health and care management in Würzburg, while research and development in medical technology takes place at the Schweinfurt location. Numerous applications are being developed and tested in cooperation with non-university research institutions and companies in Main Franconia. In the Main-Spessart district, an innovative approach to regional healthcare is being taken with the construction of a new central hospital combined with the establishment of networked inter-sectoral health centres.
In the northern part of Main Franconia – Bäderland Bayerische Rhön – the five spa towns of Bad Bocklet, Bad Brückenau, Bad Kissingen, Bad Königshofen and Bad Neustadt have been working closely together for 20 years on further developing and marketing modern health services. This region, which bears the ”Gesundheitsregion Bayern” seal of quality, has an above-average density of healthcare businesses, including more than 40 clinics and convalescence facilities with a focus especially on the health and spa sector, i.e. prevention and rehabilitation, as well as health tourism. In terms of total employment, the share of employees in the healthcare industry in the district of Bad Kissingen is the highest in Bavaria with about 28 per cent. Bad Kissingen, according to an Emnid survey the most famous spa town in Germany, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Great Spa Towns of Europe list since 2021. In future, new opportunities will arise, especially for the health resorts in Main Franconia, due to the reinstatement of outpatient convalescence as a standard benefit offered by the health insurance companies.
In addition to its high level of medical expertise, the region also offers a wide range of further education opportunities, from certificate courses to part-time university programmes in the healthcare industry. With the Zentrum für Telemedizin (ZTM) in Bad Kissingen, the innovative use of modern technologies to improve health care has become established in a sustainable way. In cooperation with medical institutions such as the RHÖN-KLINIKUM Campus Bad Neustadt, the University Hospital Würzburg and other institutions, telemedicine applications and digitalisation projects are being developed in Main Franconia and implemented both regionally and nationwide.
There is a wide range of collaborations and networks involving the stakeholders in the healthcare industry throughout Main-Franconia. At the state level, Bäderland Bayerische Rhön, Haßberge, Main-Spessart, Schweinfurt and Würzburg belong to the Bavarian State Ministry of Health and Care’s Gesundheitsregionenplus network. Innovative projects and networks are working to further improve the quality of medical care, health promotion and nursing care.
The second healthcare market also plays an important role for Main Franconia: as health awareness increases, so does the willingness to privately bear the costs of health and well-being. Demographic change is also contributing to stronger demand for services and products in the areas of health and care in future.
Due to the excellent medical quality and attractiveness of health tourism, the area of healthcare in Main Franconia has very good long-term prospects both socially and economically. Targeted health networks, high-quality education and training opportunities and the use of innovative technologies such as telemedicine support further positive development. In this way, the successful positioning of the healthcare industry and therefore the attractiveness of the region for healthcare companies and professionals will continue to play a prominent role in the economic region of Main Franconia in future.
Header Picture: VirionSerion GmbH is a manufacturer of in-vitro diagnostics (IVD) relating to viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic diseases. This also includes antibody tests that can be used to detect a Covid-19 infection after the event. Photo: VirionSerion GmbH/PR
