Certified excellenceThe first international seal of approval for the standardised assessment of European spas and health resorts

www.europespa.eu Awarded by the European Spas Association

Health tourism in Europe is booming. More than 3.000 businesses operating in the areas of prevention, reha-bilitation and medical wellness are currently competing for health tourists and patients.

Every European state is profiting from the increasing internationalisation taking place in the healthcare sec-tor. High-quality spas and health resorts are now to be found in almost every region. They include clinics spe-cialising in certain ailments and hotels aimed at certain target groups.

Yet until now, there has hardly been any way for excep-tional establishments to communicate their high quality throughout Europe to those seeking superior estab-lishments. They include the large numbers of patients willing to pay privately for treatment as well as several well-known tour operators. In addition, health insurance companies are increasingly on the look-out for reliable domestic and foreign providers of spa treatment.

Sadly, it has previously been very difficult for top spas to set themselves apart on the international market from cheaper competitors with lower standards. Consequently, the cheap resorts have often benefited from the lack of transparency, choosing to advertise with barely compre-hensible services, meaningless seals of approval and confusing information about their standards of quality.

A pioneering idea

Genuine proof of quality requires a comparable yard-stick. Up to now, however, the standards of quality applied in the healthcare sector in European states have differed enormously – especially regarding infrastruc-ture, hygiene and safety. This is where the European Spas Association steps in – with the EUROPESPA med quality initiative, which enables sophisticated spas and health resorts to clearly align themselves at the upper end of the market.

At the heart of the initiative is the EUROPESPA med seal of approval. This hallmark is based on an innovative, integrated principle of assessment which in addition to judging the quality of the medical and tourist services provided also takes into account the infrastructure used ‘from spring to bathtub’ as well as environmental protec-tion and food safety. This approach ensures that all spas and health resorts throughout Europe can be evaluated in a standardised fashion.

The extensive audit has been compiled by a team of acclaimed international experts and consists of about 400 questions based on national and international legislation.

EUROPESPA med – the European yardstick of quality

Going through the challenging EUROPESPA med audit certainly pays – for all spas and health resorts that meet EUROPESPA med’s high standards are awarded the EUROPESPA med seal of approval. This certificate dem-onstrates the holder’s superior quality, equally benefiting both the spa and its guests. What’s more, the European Spas Association regularly sends the leading European health insurance companies a list of all EUROPESPA med certified resorts.

Your competitive advantages: more guests!

For the first time, a level playing field has been intro- duced, enabling standards of quality to be compared across Europe. Moreover, www.europespa.eu provides you with a platform where you can be noticed by very attractive target groups. It can also be used to make useful new contacts and exploit new synergy effects.

For the first time, your guests have a reliable aid to decision-making when choosing the right spa or resort for them. And EUROPESPA med certified operations can reach one of the biggest and strongest markets in the world: Europe!

For the very time, European spas and health resorts from Portugal to Finland can be holistically assessed

against uniform quality criteria. Operators can hence see how they rate compared to their competition at home and abroad – and where there’s room for improvement.

For the first time, institutions from the new member states of the EU in particular can bring themselves up to scratch and ready themselves for the European market. To raise their standards of quality, test audits are carried out, allowing specific areas ripe for improvement to be highlighted.

Your advantages in communication: international attention!

EUROPESPA med certified spas and health resorts set themselves apart from the competition in travel bro-chures and adverts at first glance:

The EUROPESPA med seal of approval is an eye-catcher that helps boost sales.

The EUROPESPA med seal of approval communicates a clear statement of quality.

The EUROPESPA med seal of approval symbolises international standards.

The EUROPESPA med seal of approval – proof of quality

The EUROPESPA med seal of quality – benefits at a glance

Marketing Quality

Eye-catching seal of approvalsymbolises international quality

Europe's leading health insurancecompanies regularly receive a list of

certified spas and health resorts

Communication support fromprestigious tour operators

Sales-boosting presentation onwww.europespa.eu – the international quality

portal of the European Spas Association

Comprehensive quality testing by recognised experts

Detailed report shows all room for improvement

Regular quality-monitoring every 18 months

Anonymised league tables reveal how you stand compared to the competition at home and abroad

Highly recommended by experts

Partner of health insurance companies

The EUROPESPA med concept helps high-quality estab-lishments to be identified all over Europe. This benefit has already been picked up by several health insurance companies and has enabled them to efficiently and ef-fortlessly compare the quality of their partner spas and resorts in advance.

The first health insurance schemed to support the EUROPESPA med concept was TAUNUS BKK, which insures nearly a million people. “Whenreceivingspatreatment,ourcustomersneedtofeeltheyareinthebesthandsandarereceivingexcellentcare.That’swhyweattachsomuchimportancetothenewEUROPESPAmedsealofapproval,” declares Udo Sennlaub, CEO of TAUNUS BKK.

Techniker Krankenkasse (which insures over 6 million customers) also supports the EUROPESPA med con-cept. “Successfultherapyreliesongoodquality.Forthispurpose,it’svitalthathighstandardsaremetintermsofsafety,hygienemaintenanceandstafftraining.EUROPESPAmedatteststhattheholdercomplieswithinternationallyuniformstandards,especiallyregardingqualityandsafetymanagement.TechnikerKrankenkasse

welcomesthisapproachbecausecertificationtakesintoaccountthemaincriteria,” explains Thomas Schlicht, head of the Department of Prevention and Rehabilitation at Techniker Krankenkasse.

Popular among tour operators

The EUROPESPA med quality initiative is welcomed by tourism company TUI. “WhatwaslackinginEuropeun-tilrecentlywasauniform,internationalsealofapprovalforspasandwellnesscentres.TheEUROPESPAmedqualityinitiativefillsthisgapbyprovidingmoretrans-parencyincompetition.Thisbenefitsourcustomers,ourpartnersandultimatelyus,too,” states Mehdi Langanke, head of product management at TUI Vital.

Claudia Wagner, managing director of FIT REISEN, agrees: “WewelcomethefactthatEUROPESPAmedmeansgreatertransparencyinspasandwellnessresorts.Uniformcriteriaofqualityareverydesirableontheinternationalmarketforspaandwellnesstreatment.TheEUROPESPAmedsealofapprovaloffersafirst-classformofcertification.Aboveall,ourguestsattachhighimportancetotheservicesreceivedwhenstayingataspaorhealthresort.”

Keeping tabs on quality – the areas covered by EUROPESPA med

Regardless of whether you run a centre of medical prevention or rehabilitation, or operate in the medical wellness sector, anyone wishing to be awarded the EUROPESPA med seal of quality must meet the high standards of the European Spas Association. The following list indicates all the areas in which you can have your establishment examined.

Management system and conformitya) General requirements for proper spa operation Quality of medical procedures and structure Treatment plan Preventive measures Final examination, medical report, letter from the spa doctor Analysis of natural local remedies (e.g. healing water, peloids, climate) Balneological report

b) General conformity with local regulations regarding natural local remedies and environmental protection Official approval for the extraction of natural remedies (healing water, peloids, etc) Drinking water quality Sewage and waste disposal

c) Therapeutically relevant structure and organisation Qualifications of doctors, therapists and other medical personnel Standards of spa-related and general healthcare provided by doctors and pharmacies Quality and safety management executive

d) General quality and safety management Treatment measures Quality assurance in relevant medicinal procedures Data protection/confidentiality Hygiene plans, measures to prevent pathogens Disaster protection plans Safety facilities (fire protection, infection prevention, accident prevention, etc)

e) Quality and safety management (spa-specific aspects) Analyses of healing water and peloids including scope Documentation of cure analyses Quality assurance for external procurement of remedies and raw materials Risk analysis for medical products Cleaning and disinfection measures in connection with remedies

f) Analytical quality control Data management Regular analyses of pump rooms, baths, inhalations and mud applications Measures to check for and prevent the outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease Surface hygiene

Procurement and provision of remedies a) Protection of medicinal springs and peloids Conservation of nature and resources Springs

b) Production, treatment and storage of remedies (peloids, healing water) Storage, processing and transport Hygiene Treatment, reuse Bathing water treatment Environmental protection, safety management

Therapies, treatment, swimming pools, wellnessa) Medical sector Patient management, patient files Medical rooms Drug management Emergency infrastructure and management b) Treatment and rest areas Hygiene management General suitability of premises and technical infrastructure

c) Bathing and sauna areas Safety management Bathing standards Cleaning and disinfection in and around baths Safety and hygiene in saunas, Turkish and steam baths, as well as other wellness areas and changing rooms

Accommodation a) Accommodation and hotel infrastructure Standards of rooms, sanitary facilities and public areas: hygiene, patient safety, other spa-specific aspects Safety and hygiene regulations

Catering standardsb) Cuisine Kitchen hygiene, HACCP Range of meals Catering outlets

Welcome to www.europespa.eu – the new quality portal of the European Spas Association

To enable you to successfully position yourself on the internet as a EUROPESPA med certified establishment, the European Spas Association has created a brand new online platform: europespa.eu. Your certified spa or wellness resort will be professionally presented in this unique, well-designed quality portal to a large, international target group. Extensive search operations including medical indications enable users to directly find your institution. Furthermore, you will also enjoy access to a wide range of services on europespa.eu from which you can profit as a member of the partner programme.

Don’t delay – visit us today at www.europespa.eu!

Your recipe for success: a partnership with a powerful future

As a EUROPESPA med partner, you stand to benefit from a whole host of one-stop services. For example, the efficient partner programme offers a choice of three different ways in which your establishment and services can be successfully positioned at extremely low rates. Moreover, you can also take advantage of a wide range of specially tailored services.

Special services at www.europespa.eu Image film service –

from planning to production

Merchandising shop – free gifts and exterior promotional items for hotels

Advertising agency services – traditional advertising and sales promotion

Human resources assistance – recruitment, staff-training, language courses

Take advantage of these new options – and decide which partner model is the right one for you. For more information on the partner programme, log on to www.europespa.eu.

Benefits of the EUROPESPA med portal at a glance

More bookings: presentationofyourspecialservices andoffersonastylishwebsite

More success:highclickratesfrominternational targetgroups

More fame:professionalpresentationofyour establishmentontheEuropeanSpasAssociation’s internationalspaportal

More support:efficientpartnerprogrammewith plentyofservicesgearedtoyourindividualneeds

Benefit in three ways: from the biggest association of European spas, from an outstanding seal of approval, and from a high-traffic internet portal!

Certified excellence

Request registration forms from the European Spas Association

Return the completed forms to ESPA for processing

This will be followed by an inspection of your establishment by an auditor lasting about two days.

The auditor will draft a report – and once the audit has been passed, the EUROPESPA med certificate will be awarded.

A brief follow-up audit will be carried out 18 months later.

Ask for your registration forms now – and if you’ve any queries, don’t hesitate to ask!

Contact: Reinhard Petry European Spas Association (ESPA) AETC Secrétariat Général 1, avenue de la Renaissance B 1000 Bruxelles Tel: 00 32 (2) 7 33 26 61 Fax: 00 32 (2) 7 33 06 19 Mobile: 00 49 (0) 17 26 13 30 06 petry@espa-ehv.eu info@europespa.eu www.europespa.eu

www.europespa.eu European Spas Association

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