MEDICAL TOURISM.

What is meant by the term Medical Tourism?
                                                                 

Medical tourism refers to people traveling abroad to obtain medical treatment. In the past, this usually referred to those who traveled from less-developed countries to major medical centers in highly developed countries for treatment unavailable at home.^[1][2] However, in recent years it may equally refer to those from developed countries who travel to developing countries for lower-priced medical treatments. The motivation may be also for medical services unavailable or non-licensed in the home country: There are differences between the medical agencies (FDA, EMA, etc.) worldwide, whether a drug is approved in their country or not. Even within Europe, although therapy protocols might be approved by the European Medical Agency (EMA), several countries have their own review organizations (i.e. NICE by the NHS) in order to evaluate whether the same therapy protocol would be "cost-effective", so that patients face differences in the therapy protocols, particularly in the access of these drugs, which might be partially explained by the financial strength of the particular Health System.

Medical tourism can be defined as the process of traveling outside the country of residence for the purpose of receiving medical care. Growth in the popularity of medical tourism has captured the attention of policy-makers, researchers and the media. Originally, the term referred to the travel of patients from less-developed countries to developed nations in pursuit of the treatments not available in their homeland.

Today we are experiencing both qualitative and quantitative shifts in inpatient mobility, as people travel from richer to less-developed countries in order to access health services. Such a shift is mostly driven by the relative low-cost of treatments in less developed nations, the availability of inexpensive flights and increased marketing and online consumer information about the availability of medical services.

What really puts the word "tourism" in the medical tourism concept is that people often stay in a foreign country after the medical procedure. Travelers can thus take advantage of their visit by sightseeing, taking day trips or participating in any other traditional tourism activities.

Cost

Medical tourism represents a worldwide, multibillion-dollar phenomenon that is expected to grow considerably in the next decade. For the individual interested in health services, the cost is the key factor involved in the decision to receive medical care abroad.

As healthcare costs in the US and other parts of the world are excessively soaring, many employers and insurance companies started to view medical tourism as a way to lower them. More and more countries around the globe start to see the financial benefits from this emerging market, so they offer premium medical services at notably lower prices.

The primary reason that clinics and hospitals in the developing countries are able to lower their prices is directly related to the nation's economic status. The direct correlation with per capita gross domestic product of the country is observed, which is a proxy for income levels. As a consequence, surgery prices are from 30% to 70% lower in the countries that are promoting medical tourism when compared to the US.

Quality

There are two major components of the service quality in the health care sector - technical or mechanical quality and serviceable or functional quality. Technical equipment is at the core of the patients' diagnostic algorithm, while the functional quality is measured by the service offered in the healthcare centers (such as the services of staff, nurses and, most importantly, the doctors towards the patient and their assistants). The service quality in the medical tourism industry is a vital part of attracting customers.

One of the fundamental barriers to accepting medical tourism is the perception of inadequate quality. A key to overcome it is using adequate marketing strategies and quality assessment via accreditation from an internationally recognized institution. Such accreditation is pivotal for strengthening confidence in the quality of healthcare.

This confidence can be even stronger if accreditation is followed by affiliation with reputable hospitals or health care systems in industrialized countries. Once healthcare providers are accredited and become a part of international referral networks, they can be appropriately rated for risks.

Treatment types

Categories of different treatments and their availability also represent an important factor in the decision to engage in medical tourism. The most common types of procedures that patients pursue during medical tourism trips are elective cosmetic surgery, dentistry, organ transplantation, cardiac surgery, and orthopedic surgery.

However, a wide variety of services can be obtained through medical tourism, ranging from various essential treatments to different kinds of traditional and alternative treatments. Reproductive tourism and reproductive outsourcing are growing in popularity, which is the practice of traveling abroad to engage in surrogate pregnancy, in vitro fertilization and other assisted reproductive technology methods.

In addition to cost, another major factor responsible for the increase in medical tourism is access. The lack of it, either due to the unavailability of the technology or the prohibition in the home country, can subsequently lead to medical tourism. The common examples are a cytoplasmic transfer or stem cell therapy.

MEDICAL TOURISM IN INDIA.

India has a very vast culture and tradition hidden in her deep core. In India medicine has started very early i.e. is near 5000 B.C. (Stone Age). It was far more developed than the modern medical industry as we get. Medical tourism can be defined as the process of traveling outside the country of residence for the purpose of receiving medical care. Medical tourism is the term given to the phenomena of people traveling to another country seeking medical treatment. Medical in India essentially refers to patients from other countries coming to India for their medical treatment. Medical tourism more defined as broad health and wellness tourism refer to the industry in which people from the globe travel to other countries to get medical, dental and surgical care and at the same time, visit the local attractions of that country. 

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Impact of medical tourism in social, economic and political aspect: https://www.gdassist.com/impact-medical-tourism/the medical tourism industry is one of the few such industries globally to have a holistic impact – not only on the wellbeing of the patient but on the social, economic and political wellbeing of a nation as well.

 The social impact of medical tourism: Strong employment creation + Stronger healthcare infrastructure

The healthcare industry is among the highest employment creators the world over with a multiplier effect on the other industries too in terms of job creation. For instance, a state-of-the-art hospital, with an army of doctors, nurses and other paramedical staff, will also give impetus to the pharmaceutical and surgical equipment industries. Hence, the healthcare ecosystem of a nation that positions itself as a medical value destination can provide a further impetus to its employment generation capacity when patients from all over the world come for drawing medical benefits offered by it.

It is often said that a rising tide lifts all boats. Hence, the country that has come to create a reputation in quality healthcare will focus on staying at the cutting-edge of medical innovation and progress, which can benefit its own citizens too in terms of providing them with access to quality healthcare services at affordable costs. With this, as awareness about healthcare rises, there will be a predisposition towards preventive healthcare that can not only augment the resource productivity of a nation but also help it reduce its healthcare budget, thereby having a strong social impact.

Medical tourism can drive a robust social multiplier effect on a nation in terms of enhancing employment generation as well as fostering a culture of innovation and advancement in the field of healthcare and medicine.

The economic impact of medical tourism: Strong contribution to GDP growth + Stronger impact on healthcare, travel and tourism industries

With a healthy consolidated growth of about 19% (compounded) projected for the global medical tourism industry, the size of the sector in most of the medical value destinations the world over is expected to rise sharply in the future. Take the instance of India. The size of the Indian medical tourism industry is valued at about USD 3-billion and is expected to surge to USD 8-billion by 2020. Similarly, the valuation of the Malaysian medical tourism industry is expected to grow to USD 3.5-billion by 2024 with a sharp surge expected in patients coming from China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar and India. In a similar vein, the Thai medical tourism industry surpassed the USD 4.6-billion mark in 2016, led by an upwelling in patients from Japan and the Middle East, among others. With a significant market size and even more significant growth potential, the medical tourism industry strongly contributes to the economic growth of a country, in addition to having a multiplier impact on other allied sectors.

The medical tourism industry has a robust bearing on the travel and tourism industries as patients travel by air and prefer to stay back post-treatment for relaxation, leisure, and sight-seeing. In several cases, reputed hospitality destinations also offer comprehensive wellness and rejuvenation packages that include yoga, meditation and other leisure therapies that a patient can avail of. Particularly, in a large and diverse medical market like India, patients can have several leisure options available to them in terms of the seaside, mountain and forest getaways. Hence, in many cases, patient spends are not just restricted to those on healthcare even as they maximize their visit by spending on travel and tourism too.

Patients going to Thailand, for instance, would also like to spend a few days sightseeing and touring the country post-treatment, especially its pristine beaches and bustling markets.https://www.clickbank.com/products/travel/latin-american/unraveling-the-mysteries-of-moving-to-costa-rica/ Hence, medical tourism not only contributes to the economic growth of a nation but to those of a country’s travel and tourism industries too.

The political impact of medical tourism: Strong political associations + Stronger developmental relationships

It is a fact that a number of young Pakistani infants afflicted by grave diseases are recuperating in Indian hospitals. This is a heartwarming humanitarian instance of how countries are transcending their geopolitical differences and legacy issues to create unsurpassed goodwill among their neighboring country’s citizens. The Indian Government’s Ministry of External Affairs regularly receives requests from the parents of children suffering from serious afflictions and takes up the cause for the requisite visas to be issued expeditiously. With the globalization of the medical tourism industry, it has the power to reshape cultural ties among nations and create stronger political associations for the greater humanitarian good in the true spirit of diplomatic altruism.

The deep political impact of medical tourism can also be gauged from the fact that as the patient traffic increases between countries, dialogue and communication increases, thus leading to higher levels of cooperation and creating stronger developmental bonds and relationships. The medical tourism industry has also fostered cordial relations between nations that has helped advance the exchange of ideas and insights that have benefitted all the stakeholders in the ecosystem. This also leads to improved human rights regulations and safety of travellers in destination countries.

Medical tourism paves the way towards mutually-beneficial political ties between nations, thus nurturing the healthcare developmental manifesto in specific and global progress and advancement in general.

Thus, it is amply clear that the medical tourism industry provides a global and holistic multiplier impetus that few other industries can. Moreover, emerging nations can leverage the value of medical tourism to ensure inclusive growth while also projecting their image as a socialist state.