Medical tourism has been growing for greater than a decade. It began with people selecting cosmetic surgery abroad in seek for higher prices and anonymity. Since then, it has moved inevitably into the non-cosmetic area. Patients from various regions of the world now travel for orthopedic and heart surgery, dentistry, hernias, cataracts and almost any form of elective surgery.
One of the preferred destinations is India. What makes India a horny medical tourist destination is low-cost treatment. It is estimated that treatment costs in India start at around a tenth of the worth of analogous procedures within the United States or Britain. Many of the doctors were educated or practiced within the West, so their expertise is equally impeccable. In many countries, people need to wait an extended time period to undergo a surgery, so these countries have developed links with India for fast treatments for his or her nationals. The Indian government has created incentives comparable to a fast-track visa for foreign patients. However, India has competitors. Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore – all have government-backed medical tourism programs.
Thailand has long been an enormous draw for medical tourists. More and more hospitals are accredited by JCAHO (the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health care Organizations), and the variety of medical tourists is increasing. Over a million every yr go there for medical procedures starting from cosmetic surgery to heart treatment.
The Philippines also boast a few of the very best hospitals offering best expertise, highest level facilities, and warm hospitality. There are also among the world’s best spa resorts and tour destinations within the region.
Singapore, one other medical hub, is planned to be developed into a number one health care destination in Asia. Although there aren’t any official figures yet, industry experts are guessing that greater than 400,000 foreigners visited Singapore for medical care last yr, maintaining a gentle growth of a mean of 20 percent over the past few years.
Latin American countries offer hospital-and-tourism packages to the US residents. In Central America, nations are marketing their cosmetic surgery, dentistry and certain surgical procedures, together with a “getaway” vacation.
Then there are Eastern European countries, which provide the bottom prices in Europe. For instance, cataract removal in Poland or Lithuania would cost £650, as in comparison with £2,350 within the UK.
Clinics are also popping up in transit zones: there may be one at Munich international airport; Dubai is planning to open the Dubai Health care City by the tip of the last decade.
South Africa, Jordan, Tunisia, Turkey – all have entered the lucrative market or are attempting to achieve this, and the list of nations is expanding every yr.
