Introduction
In Mexico, private hospitals face a “red ocean” scenario with saturated markets and fierce competition in cities like Cancun, Guadalajara, or Tijuana. Building or acquiring facilities no longer guarantees sustainability due to intense competition.
The Challenging Landscape of Private Hospitals in Mexico
The hospital subsector in Mexico has become increasingly regulated and challenging for healthcare industry leaders. Legislative changes, such as IVA charges on insurance policies, threaten annual cost increases of 35% to 45% for users. Innovative expansion methods have become essential.
TecSalud Network: A Collaborative Solution
TecSalud, the Tecnológico de Monterrey’s healthcare system, has chosen collaboration through TecSalud Network, a national network prioritizing alliances among hospitals for patient-focused efforts rather than aggressive expansions.
Launched three years ago, this initiative aims to transform Mexico’s private healthcare system, aligning with the institutional vision of nurturing talent and elevating quality. Led by Dr. Jorge Azpiri, TecSalud’s Director of Development and Expansion Projects, the network now includes 15 hospitals in 13 cities, such as Joya, focusing on medical tourism in Puerto Vallarta and Cancun.
“Collaboration is the Smartest Way to Grow”
Dr. Azpiri emphasizes that collaboration is not only an ethical choice but a business strategy generating shared value, reducing risks, and accelerating the adoption of best practices. He references “The Blue Ocean Strategy” by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, which discusses leaving behind the bloody competitive ocean and creating safe market spaces where competition is irrelevant.
Five Pillars of TecSalud Network
Dr. Azpiri outlines five fundamental pillars for TecSalud Network, which are not limiting but allow adaptations to specific needs:
- Medical and service quality: Assistance for national certifications, Joint Commission, or Canadian Accreditation.
- Training and academy: Nursing courses on catheter management or infection prevention, as well as training in advanced technologies like the Da Vinci robot or ECMO.
- Executive formation: Diplomas with EGADE, Tec de Monterrey’s business school (one of the top 3 in Latin America) focusing on crisis management and budgeting in uncertainty.
- Support for medical and nursing directors: Facilitating ethics, regulatory, and academic committees for complex cases in cardiology, oncology, or surgery.
- Research: Hospitals collaborate on national issues like diabetes through sede or subsede roles in research projects.
These pillars enable personalized plans or “made-to-measure” approaches after an initial diagnosis with directors and owners, defining annual programs with quarterly reviews for dynamic adjustments.
Adapting to Mexican Realities
Unlike international models like Mayo Clinic’s collaboration with Médica Sur, TecSalud Network adapts to Mexican and regional realities. Sharing negotiated packages with insurers for robotic surgeries reduces the one-and-a-half-year learning curve for affiliates, making advanced technologies more accessible without prohibitive costs.
Business Efficiency and Scalability
From a business perspective, TecSalud Network generates efficiency and scalability. Affiliation fees are accessible, based on human-hour commitments, per diems, and the personalized plan’s reach—not a fixed scheme for everyone. This covers operational costs without high-margin pursuits, prioritizing sustainability.
For TecSalud, it means expansion without massive investments in brick-and-mortar; for affiliates, access to Tec’s expertise like architectural design or labor culture, as seen with Grupo Médico Joya’s rapid growth from 3 to 9 hospitals in Mexico’s tourist zones.
Beyond the Private Sector: Interinstitutional Collaborations
TecSalud Network’s implications extend beyond the private sector, as it explores interinstitutional collaborations like pilot initiatives with the government for transplants (in coordination with the National Transplant Center, Cenatra) and standardized orthopedic surgeries. This could multiply impacts, like in Chile, which has a similar population to Mexico City but performs 10 times more lung transplants.
Annual TecSalud Network Meeting: Aspirations for the Future
At the end of October, TecSalud Network held its annual meeting, discussing aspirations to become a network of hospitals focused on medicine through academia, research, efficiency, and quality care. These alliances are crucial for the country’s health advancement by elevating service quality for societal benefit.
The challenge, as Dr. Azpiri notes, is maintaining a compact network (aiming for 18 hospitals) to preserve quality and ensuring integrated hospitals genuinely interested in academia and research. He also anticipates the upcoming integration of Health Tech, set to open in the country’s capital in 2025, where TecSalud plans to focus on critical mass for innovation, such as pioneering the global use of convalescent plasma for COVID-19.
Rumors of Change at Cofepris
Possible Departure of Armida Zúñiga from Cofepris
Rumors circulated last week in the health sector suggesting Dr. Armida Zúñiga might leave her position at Cofepris. This isn’t the first time such rumors have surfaced this year, with notable criticism against the commissioner president of the health regulator. If true, Dr. Victor Hugo Borja could become the new sanitary responsible, who is close to the 4T circle and visited Cofepris on Friday.
The concern lies in the instability reflected for a vital organization for healthcare sector insumos (medications, devices, etc.) and a significant part of the national economy. Restarting learning curves with a new leader is not ideal, especially if it involves operational structure changes.
Dr. Zúñiga’s technical expertise has been valuable for the regulatory body, though she’s been criticized for her rigidity and limited political skills amidst system requirements. In a recent interview, she discussed advances in clinical protocol approval response agility, regulatory simplification, and commitment to eliminating backlogs by the first half of 2026.
OPS Strategic Plan for 2026: Focusing on Non-Communicable Diseases, Mental Health, and Safety
The Organization of Pan American Health’s (OPS) strategic plan for 2026 has clear objectives: more effectively address non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health, healthcare safety, fragmented national health systems, and the elimination of transmittable diseases.
Other measurable impacts, mentioned in Jarbas Barbosa’s year-end message, the OPS director, include reducing maternal mortality, decreasing suicides, and eliminating diseases like leprosy and Chagas. “Looking ahead to 2026, OPS reaffirms its commitment to leaving no one behind,” Barbosa stated, emphasizing that health is the foundation for development, security, economic stability, and social resilience.
This commitment, along with regional cooperation, will be realized starting in 2026 and beyond through the newly approved OPS Strategic Plan 2026-2031, adopted by the Organization’s Member States in September 2025.
