The term “Medical Tourism” also known as health tourism is becoming very popular in these days. It means to travel across different countries to find health care. These health care or treatments include common problems and complex treatments such as cardiac surgery, joint replacement, cosmetic surgery and dental surgery. The customer and provider communicate through reliable sources to assure quality of service and making contract. Such medical tours need leisure aspects of tourism and travel. Health tourism patients should know the extra cost in traveling, health care and accommodations on treatment locations. The popularity of medical tourism is increased by many factors such as long waits for certain procedures, high costs, affordability of travel, standard and quality of health and care services. Medical tourists travel to Europe, United States, UK, Canada, Middle East, Canada and Japan to obtain quality health care services at reasonable prices.
Medical Tourism in Mexico
The specialists of plastic surgery and dentistry are very popular in Mexico. Medical tourism patients travel to Mexico from all over the world to obtain quality medical care in dentistry and plastic surgery. Americans also move to Mexico for dental health care because the charges of dentist in America are very high as compare to the charges of Mexican dentist. Mexican dentists charge one fourth to one fifth of US dentists price. This trend of medical tourism to Mexico is very alarming for American dentists so they have spread many rumors of infections, oral cancer and poor treatments against Mexican dentists.
In Texas, it is explored that health organizations can operate on both sides of the border but physicians of south Texas argue that they cannot compete with the lower costs of Mexican dentists. Legal system of Mexico doesn’t allow any kind of sue against Mexican doctors. Medical tourists are satisfied with the quality of health services in Mexico and according to an advocacy group of health care issues 90 percent care they received in Mexico is excellent. Mexican hospitals are not popular only for dental and plastic surgery but they provide quality services for bar iatric surgery for weight loss. Lap band surgery, a popular bar iatric surgery is approved by FDA in 2001 in US is also performed by the surgeons of Mexico. The hospitals of Mexico are well equipped with latest technology and medical equipments for all medical tourism requirements.
Medical Tourism in Panama
Panama is also a popular place for medical tourism due to its tourist appeal, position and use of dollar as the official currency. The medical specialists of Panama are very popular all over the world and use latest technology and equipment to treat patients. Doctors of Panama are bilingual and can operate on the same technology and medical equipment which are used in Europe and America. The charges of health care in Panama are 50% less than the charges of US. In addition to dental implants, assisted reproduction, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry, cardialogy, eye surgery orthopedics and pulmonology are the popular treatments in the hospitals of [...]
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Medical Tourism in Mexico and Panama
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Medical Tourism
Medical tourism is the process of traveling abroad in order to receive medical care, be it cosmetic surgery, heart surgery, breast implants, a hip replacement, or dental work.
Rising health care costs and longer waiting times in the western countries like United States, Canada, and UK etc. are inducing patients to seek treatment overseas. While U.S. consumers are concerned mainly with the exorbitant cost of health care, Canadians are more troubled by wait-times for certain treatments. Indeed, approximately 1 million Canadians claim to be experiencing difficulties in access to care. As for UK, it is believed that more than 50,000 people from the UK travel for treatment abroad because of high medical care costs in UK.
Medical Tourism in South Korea
South Korea has been growing as a tourist destination of choice for health and vacation because of their world class physicians, modern technology, and unique caring and compassion at great values for money at a fraction of the cost in the west. The country is home to some of the best hospitals and stand alone Specialty clinics in the world, offering world-class expertise, state-of-the-art facilities, http://www.koreahealthtour.co.kr and the warmth of hospitality. Also, some of the world’s best spa retreat resorts and tour destinations can be found in this part of the earth. Additionally, it’s not unusual to find plus accommodations, foreign language translators, and other amenities at some of the major facilities.
South Korea has made its initial foray into the lucrative market of medical tourism by launching the Council for Korea Medicine Overseas Promotion. Funded by the Government and 28 private hospitals, this organization will market medical packages to foreign patients seeking affordable health care. The Council has initiated a set of measures to promote the medical vacation industry by aiding hospitals in their marketing strategies. In this way, South Korea can generate greater overseas awareness of the country’s medical and tourism offerings. According to a Council official:
The average charge for an in-patient visit in a US hospital is dollar3,762, which is 13 times higher than in South Korea.
The average charge for outpatients in the US is dollar13,000 which is 9 times higher than in South Korea.
South Korea’s affordable health care system has seen the number of foreign patients rise from 10,000 to 13,000 in just 2 years. With all these added measures in place, South Korea is on its way to claim its share in the prosperous medical vacation business
Benefits of Medical Tourism
Health care costs are constantly on the rise in countless Western countries. In the US alone, it is already a multi-billion dollar industry that shows no sign of stopping (worldwide it is over dollar3 trillion US). But why pay exorbitant prices at home when you can travel abroad and receive the same treatment (if not better) from a fully certified medical facility for a fraction of the price?
The following are some of the benefits of medical tourism:
Affordable
For many procedures, it’s often more expensive to receive treatment at home than it is to purchase a plane [...]
Medical Tourism ? Getting Well Just Got a Whole Lot Cheaper!
Medical tourism, even a decade back, was largely unheard of. However, in recent years, medical tourism has become an industry on its own. It is a phenomenon that has taken the world of healthcare by storm. Its impact can be felt strongly in the tourism industry as well. Everyday we get to hear about how medical tourism has helped, and continuing to do so, countless people get better at affordable costs. So, what is medical tourism? Why is everybody talking about it these days? Let’s take a closer look.
Medical tourism, as the name itself suggests, is a combination of medical services with tourism. In other words, it’s tourism with a purpose. The practice of visiting new places in search of favorable climate or on just being advised by a doctor to go ‘on a change’ is not new. Medical tourism is just an evolved form of this age old habit of humanity.
The primary reason behind its surging popularity is better healthcare services at an affordable budget. When one’s health is one’s concern, it is natural to look for the best treatment options within one’s budget. Countries such as India, Malaysia and Dubai are fast coming to the forefront as provider of world-class healthcare facilities. These include a wide array of highly skilled healthcare professionals, trained in various specialized disciplines, state-of-the-art equipment and modern amenities, impeccable service and personal attention to every need of the patient, and all these at a cost that’s surprisingly affordable.
Let’s face it, medical services in the west are expensive by most standards. Most people in need of specialized healthcare services feel daunted by the high cost associated with them. Countries such as US, Canada or some European nations, offer the same high standard healthcare facilities as India, Malaysia or Dubai, at a cost that’s substantially greater. Frankly, not everybody can afford the high cost associated with healthcare services in his or her own country.
All this naturally necessitates the need to look for similar healthcare services elsewhere, where the cost is significantly lower. Healthcare tourism makes it possible to save up to 80% (as compared to US/UK) on medical costs by opting for countries like India. Healthcare tourism in India is fast gaining in popularity because of this simple reason.
Medical tourism also gives you other advantages such as reduced waiting periods for your treatment. If there is a critical treatment involved, or an operation that needs to be done quickly, you can initiate the process almost immediately after contacting the healthcare professionals in these countries. Most hospitals or medical establishments in the US or UK have lengthy waiting lists and necessitate wait for a substantially longer period of time.
Medical tourism does not mean that you have to compromise on anything just because you are not in your own country. Smart and well-informed professionals, speaking fluent English and attending to every detail with meticulous attention, only add to the overall experience. You can rest assured knowing that the task of caring for your [...]
What You Need to Know About Emerging Trends in Medical Tourism
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Medical tourism is commonly described as the practice of obtaining medical services in a foreign destination. Although this niche market is now being capitalized on and becoming better known, the practice of traveling abroad for services is not new.
Switzerland, in particular, has long since been attracting the rich and famous to its beautiful surroundings, for innovative procedures and a relaxing vacation. There are many sources that site Switzerland as the pioneer of medical tourism.
Medical tourism is not just for the rich and famous anymore, and Switzerland is not the only destination. About ten years ago, countries in Asia realized that the opportunity exists to fill the unmet needs of millions worldwide.
For nearly a decade, the concept of medical tourism has been misunderstood and received bad media coverage in developed countries. Today not only has that trend reversed, but medical tourism is being embraced as a viable option for people in need of affordable medical care. Well known newspapers and television networks are doing pieces medical tourism as a whole and are spotlighting individuals who have taken advantage of the cost saving option.
What is driving the expansion of the medical tourism industry? Countries such as India have been quick to recognize that the Western world is not providing timely medical care to its citizens. In both the United States and Canada, it is not uncommon to wait for more than 4 months to be seen after a referral is made. Then, there is more waiting time while tests are scheduled. Additional time passes waiting for the test results. If the result is that there is a need for a procedure, it could be several more weeks before surgery is scheduled. Non emergency medical attention may be extended for up to two years. There is basically no wait time in foreign countries such as India and Thailand.
Another driving force is the outrageous and ever rising costs of medical insurance. It is not uncommon for a family to be quoted $1,000 or more for monthly insurance premiums, which only covers a portion of the bill, AFTER the $5,000 annual deductible is met! That equates to $17,000 in out of pocket payments before the insurance coverage kicks in. The average worker cannot afford $17,000 and in many instances, that figure far supercedes the annual income! In the United States, there are 43.3 million uninsured people.
What happens then, to the average person who is uninsured and in need of a heart bypass? If not aware of the option of medical tourism, the uninsured worker will face the choice of going without the surgery, or of withdrawing his life savings, or taking out a loan in order to pay for the surgery.
The same worker can obtain the surgery in another country for $10,000 vs. $70,000 in the US. He can get a knee replacement for $6,000 vs. $50,000! Although still a large amount of money, it is much more [...]