A few decades ago patients from a number of developing countries had to travel to the west. Several treatments and complicated medical procedures were unavailable locally. The combined costs of travel and treatment were prohibitively high for all but the most affluent. Now the tables have turned. It has become common for patients from the first world to visit developing nations to seek affordable and timely care.
Cost drivers
One of the primary drivers of medical tourism is cost. Including preoperative procedures and extended postoperative care, the cost of a single liver transplant in the US can exceed $600,000. The same procedure in India can be performed for about $60,000. The average cost of a total knee replacement (TKR) in the United States averages $55,000. In Mexico, TKR can be done for less than $12,000, inclusive of travel and hotel costs. Price differences between developed and developing countries are also significant for dental and cosmetic surgery, two of the most popular procedures in the industry. The US is the foremost origin country of overseas treatment seekers. More than a million Americans seek treatments abroad annually. Medical insurance does not cover all procedures. The propensity of insurance companies to unpredictably deny claims is also a contributing factor. The lofty costs of American healthcare have forced some employers to look for radical solutions. This includes incorporating overseas treatments into formal employee healthcare programs.
Treatment delayed is treatment denied
Wait times for certain procedures in some countries are simply too long. In parts of Canada, it is common for patients to wait 5 months or longer just to see specialist doctors. Canadian queues for diagnostic tests such as MRI and ultrasound scans are weeks long. Queues for the actual treatments can be longer. In 2018 the median wait time for orthopaedic surgery in Canada was 10 months. In the same year, the number of patients waiting for surgery in the UK’s hospitals exceeded 4.3 million.
Wait times exacerbate patients’ conditions. Delayed treatments reduce the success rates of all procedures, particularly surgical. There have been several cases where delayed treatment led to permanent disability. It is only natural for patients to want to bypass unreasonable waiting times and seek treatments abroad.
Quality of treatment
The quality of medical procedures and care in many developing countries is often better than the regions where patients originate. This is owed to several factors. Some of the most popular destinations for medical tourism are India, Thailand, Taiwan, Cuba, Argentina, Mexico, and Turkey. Developing countries have fewer per capita health professionals. As a result, doctors tend to acquire vast amounts of professional experience. Lower labour costs have resulted in an abundance of cost-effective medical support staff. This contributes to patients receiving more personalized care and attention. The growth of the industry has attracted many players. Rising competition has markedly raised standards. Satisfied patients spread a positive word, which is worth more to service providers than any form of paid advertising. This is why foreign patients are frequently treated with all the care and attention warranted for ambassadors.
The advent of accreditation has added a new dimension to quality assurance in medical tourism. International healthcare accreditation organizations now certify hospitals, procedures, and individual doctors for compliance and quality. In 2004 the WHO started something called the World Alliance for Patient Safety. It involves governments to set standards in patient safety, specifically in the domain of international medical tourism.
Value addition
Competition has also led to the introduction of several value-added and specialized services. There are facilities in India and elsewhere, that specialize in treating patients from specific regions of the world. Medical centres often support a vast community of peripheral service providers. Experienced intermediaries help patients match their treatment needs with hospitals even before they travel. Interpreters provide language translation and other services. These help patients negotiate treatment details and costs. Travel agents arrange flights, hotels and sightseeing tours. One component of the cost of overseas treatments is cross-border money transfers and currency conversion. Ria Money Transfer is an optimal solution to all your needs related to paying for overseas treatments and expenses.
Several types of surgery require a significant period of postoperative rest. Travel is not advised for recovering patients during this time. Getting medical care overseas is sometimes also subject to legalities. Patients commonly seek treatments abroad, which may not be legal in their home countries. Many hospitals now employ multilingual specialists to help patients deal with these important considerations.
Concluding remarks
Medical tourism is conclusive evidence that many countries have broken healthcare systems. One nation’s loss is another nation’s gain. Like all industries, medical tourism was born out of a need. The same needs contribute to its continued growth today.
