HOMS Health and Wellness Center opens, a project that will strengthen health tourism in Santiago

• The modern complex, an investment of more than US$108 million, has a sustainable design and state-of-the-art construction by Ingeniería Estrella, and comprises a medical specialties professional tower, a hotel and an innovative convention centre, with 700 parking spaces.

Santiago, Dominican Republic, April 2024. – The President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader Corona; Vice President Raquel Peña; and the ministers of health and tourism, Víctor Atallah and David Collado, joined the Board of Directors, chaired by Dr. Rafael Sánchez Español, at the opening of the HOMS Health and Wellness Center (HHWC), a modern complex committed to developing health tourism in the northern region of the country.

Strategically located at the entrance to the city of Santiago, 10 minutes from Cibao International Airport and just steps from HOMS, the innovative building is the first of its kind to open in the country, combining a medical specialties professional tower, a hotel and a convention centre.

With 51,000 square metres of construction and an investment of approximately 108 million dollars, the HHWC is part of the expansion plan of Hospital Metropolitano de Santiago (HOMS) to become a health city.

Dr. Sánchez Español highlighted the hospital’s more than 15-year track record of providing excellent health services to Dominicans and foreigners.

“This achievement is the result of our innovative spirit, which has positioned us as leaders in robotic surgery in the country and the main player in health tourism in the north, and now as pioneers in having a cutting-edge centre that represents a long-term commitment, stimulating economic growth and job creation and promoting the development of local skills with the new vision of Santiago as a tourist destination,” said the doctor in his opening speech.

HOMS is the country’s first major hospital with International Accreditation of Health Services from Accreditation Canada (ACI), and a founding partner of the Dominican Health Tourism Association (ADTS).

During the event, President Luis Abinader said that health tourism is a major bet; the sector must grow a great deal in the country, and it is a bet on the real development of the Dominican Republic. “Projects like this help us improve in every area and move along that path.”

The president congratulated the shareholders of the major HOMS project, which he said has been a success not only from a business point of view but also for the province and the country, because it has become a benchmark for quality healthcare. He said the strength of Santiago, and of societies that truly succeed, lies in business people coming together to go beyond maximising profits and make way for development.

The 13-storey medical specialties professional tower has 167 consulting rooms with state-of-the-art equipment, private waiting rooms, a sample collection area and nursing rooms on every floor. It also has centres specialising in conditions whose treatments are in high demand in health tourism, such as dentistry, anti-ageing and aesthetic medicine, a sleep unit, microbiota studies and metabolic surgery, among others.

A distinctive feature of the HHWC is its novel convention centre, which can hold 426 people seated and 500 standing; it has an innovative retractable seating system that deploys and stows the chairs automatically, making it the ideal space for telemedicine, conferences, training activities, congresses and social events. It also has auxiliary meeting rooms.

The complex also includes 700 parking spaces, 18 lifts and a loading dock.

Likewise, the Residence Inn by Marriott will strengthen the hotel offering in the area, contributing to its tourism development. It has 115 extended-stay rooms available to health and wellness tourists as well as business and leisure travellers. It will also have recreational amenities such as a restaurant, bar, gym, swimming pool and a Sky Lounge with a 180-degree view, for those who want to admire the “heart city” from above.

The HOMS Health and Wellness Center was built to international standards, with cutting-edge technology, sustainable design and state-of-the-art construction by Ingeniería Estrella. In addition, 65% of it was built with prefabricated elements, using steel for the main structure, PanelKret system façade enclosures and thermally treated modular windows.

Also attending the event were the Minister of Public Works, Deligne Ascensión; the Governor of Santiago, Rosa Santos; Senator Eduardo Estrella; Dr. Brígida Navarro de Sánchez; Lina García; the directors of SENASA, Santiago Hazim, and of the Internal Revenue Service, Luis Valdez; the mayor-elect of Santiago, Ulises Rodríguez; the chairman of the Board of Directors of Refidomsa, Leonardo Aguilera; the deputy administrator of Banco de Reservas, Isidro García; and the executive vice president of Corporate and Investment Business at Banco Popular, René Grullón.

At the end of the event, held in the modern convention centre with a blessing from the Reverend Father Secilio Espinal, a member of the HOMS Board of Directors, government representatives and leading figures from the health and tourism sectors, together with members of the Board of Directors, toured the complex’s facilities.