Healthcare industry is a branch of the economy which can serve as the basis for the development of Rijeka and the entire PGK region. However, further efforts are needed in order to gather all the potential in a unique system and offer it as a unique brand, both on the domestic and foreign market. This was the conclusion of the round table entitled "Healthcare industry in Rijeka and the region - from strategy to realisation", organised by the members of the association Riječki val in cooperation with the Faculty of Medicine.
Along with the representatives of public and private healthcare institutions, the representatives of the University of Rijeka and the pharmaceutical industry also took part in the discussion, seeing as the healthcare industry, besides offering medical services and healthcare tourism, also entails the development of biotechnology, pharmaceutical industry, medical equipment, virtual medicine, telemedicine and educational processes.
Other than respected members of the aforementioned association, including the Head of Poliklinika Medico Vladimir Mozetič, Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka Tomislav Rukavina and Zlatko Kolić from the Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, Anna Maria Donadić, Director of the Aqua Maris Programme, participated actively in the panel discussion on behalf of JGL. With the topic "Meralys - from idea to product", Donadić presented to the participants of the round table the successful development and brandingof Meralys, the combination of a reliable drug, xylometazoline, and the healing effects of seawater. Donadić particularly emphasized the importance of the fact that JGL employees, through their work on Meralys, have gained key competences in the area of branding, which is an opportunity available only to a few people in Croatia. This kind of experience and knowledge can certainly contribute significantly to the development of a general and recognisable market brand of healthcare industry in the Primorje-Gorski kotar County.
Good basis for development is also the document Strategy for the development of the healthcare industry of PGK County by 2020, a unique document in Croatia, also serving as the basis for an action plan. The main mission emphasised by this document is to connect all the existing resources into a unique system which will enable the utilisation of all potentials, said Rukavina.