Diagnostic Ent

Diagnostic Ent

"Medical Tourism" by Rameez Raja

Medical Tourism in India

Indian corporate hospitals excel in cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery, joint replacement, orthopedic surgery, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, transplants and urology to name a few. The various specialties covered are Neurology, Neurosurgery, Oncology, Ophthalmology, Rheumatology, Endocrinology, ENT, Pediatrics, Pediatric Surgery, Pediatric Neurology, Urology, Nephrology, Dermatology, Dentistry, Plastic Surgery, Gynecology, Pulmonology, Psychiatry, General Medicine & General Surgery.

The various facilities in India include full body pathology, comprehensive physical and gynecological examinations, dental checkup, eye checkup, diet consultation, audiometry, spirometry, stress & lifestyle management, pap smear, digital Chest X-ray, 12 lead ECG, 2D echo colour doppler, gold standard DXA bone densitometry, body fat analysis, coronary risk markers, cancer risk markers, carotid colour doppler, spiral CT scan and high strength MRI. Each test is carried out by professional M.D. physicians, and is comprehensive yet pain-free.

There is also a gamut of services ranging from General Radiography, Ultra Sonography, Mammography to high end services like Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Digital Subtraction Angiography along with intervention procedures, Nuclear Imaging. The diagnostic facilities offered in India are comprehensive to include Laboratory services, Imaging, Cardiology, Neurology and Pulmonology. The Laboratory services include biochemistry, hematology, microbiology, serology, histopathology, transfusion medicine and RIA.

All medical investigations are conducted on the latest, technologically advanced diagnostic equipment. Stringent quality assurance exercises ensure reliable and high quality test results. As Indian corporate hospitals are on par, if not better than the best hospitals in Thailand, Singapore, etc there is scope for improvement, and the country may become a preferred medical destination. In addition to the increasingly top class medical care, a big draw for foreign patients is also the very minimal or hardly any waitlist as is common in European or American hospitals. In fact, priority treatment is provided today in Indian hospitals.

The Apollo Group, Escorts Hospitals in New Delhi and Jaslok Hospitals in Mumbai are to name a few which are established names even abroad. A list of corporate hospitals such as Global Hospitals, CARE and Dr L.V. Prasad Eye Hospitals in Hyderabad, The Hindujas and NM Excellence in Mumbai, also have built capabilities and are handling a steadily increasing flow of foreign patients. India has much more expertise than say Thailand or Malaysia. The infrastructure in some of India's hospitals is also very good. What is more significant is that the costs are much less, almost one-third of those in other Asian countries.

SCOPE OF MEDICAL TOURISM

India is considered the most important country promoting medical tourism. India is one of the most touted medical tourism destinations in the world. India is a recent entrant into medical tourism. According to a study by McKinsey and the Confederation of Indian Industry, medical tourism in India could become a $1 billion business by 2012. The report predicts that: "By 2012, if medical tourism were to reach 25 per cent of revenues of private up-market players, up to 2,297,794,117 USD will be added to the revenues of these players". The Indian government predicts that India's $17-billion-a-year health-care industry could grow 13 per cent in each of the next six years, boosted by medical tourism, which industry watchers say is growing at 30 per cent annually.

 

Price advantage is a major selling point. The slogan, thus is, "First World treatment' at Third World prices". The cost differential across the board is huge: only a tenth and sometimes even a sixteenth of the cost in the West. Open-heart surgery could cost up to $70,000 in Britain and up to $150,000 in the US; in India's best hospitals it could cost between $3,000 and $10,000. Knee surgery (on both knees) costs 350,000 rupees ($7,700) in India; in Britain this costs £10,000 ($16,950), more than twice as much. Dental, eye and cosmetic surgeries in Western countries cost three to four times as much as in India.

India have a lot of hospitals offering world class treatments in nearly every medical sector such as cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery, joint replacement, orthopedic surgery, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, transplants and urology to name a few. The various specialties covered are Neurology, Neurosurgery, Oncology, Ophthalmology, Rheumatology, Endocrinology, ENT, Pediatrics, Pediatric Surgery, Pediatric Neurology, Urology, Nephrology, Dermatology, Dentistry, Plastic Surgery, Gynecology, Pulmonology, Psychiatry, General Medicine & General Surgery.

Leisure Tourism is already very much in demand in India as the country offers diverse cultural and scenic beauty. India has almost all sort of destinations like high mountains, vast deserts, scenic beaches, historical monuments, religious temples etc. Known for its hospitality for tourists, the county has opened doors to welcome with the same hospitality.

BOOMING MEDICAL TOURISM IN INDIA

Medical tourism in India has emerged as the fastest growing segment of tourism industry despite the global economic downturn. High cost of treatments in the developed countries, particularly the USA and UK, has been forcing patients from such regions to look for alternative and cost-effective destinations to get their treatments done. The Indian medical tourism industry is presently at a nascent stage, but has an enormous potential for future growth and development.

As per our new market research report "Booming Medical Tourism in India", India's share in the global medical tourism industry will climb to around 2.4% by the end of 2012. Moreover, the medical tourism is expected to generate revenue of US$ 2.4 Billion by 2012, growing at a CAGR of over 27% during 2009–2012. The number of medical tourists is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 19% in the forecast period to reach 1.1 Million by 2012.

We have also found that India represents the most potential medical tourism market in the world. Factors such as low cost, scale and range of treatments provided by India differentiate it from other medical tourism destinations. In addition to the existence of modern medicine, indigenous or traditional medical practitioners are providing their services across the country. There are over 3,000 hospitals and around 726,000 registered practitioners catering to the needs of traditional Indian healthcare.

CURRENT TRENDS AND PREDICTIONS FOR GROWTH

There are mixed views about the current market, with over half believing that the market has declined or remained static in the past twelve months.  Around half of the organisations have seen no growth or a decline in their business over the past year although 47% state that their current business situation is good or very good.  A third of respondents report a growth in their medical tourism business of 10% or more last year. The vast majority are confident about future business prospects with 76% expecting the overall market to grow in the next twelve months.

 

OPPORTUNITIES

Respondents are most optimistic about the dental and cosmetic surgery markets.  The majority of organisations surveyed have little understanding of the European Union Directive on Patient Mobility but nevertheless believe that the ratification of the Directive will increase the number of medical tourists with Europe.

 

CHALLENGES

Competition and marketing issues are seen as the major problems facing organisations involved in medical tourism.  Other key issues are:

• Insufficient demand
• Insurance and liability issues
• Lack of quality standards and international standards
• Lack of professionalism within the industry

 

PATIENT CHOICE

The main factors considered to influence patient choice are:

• Expertise and qualifications of the doctor/dentist
• Comments and ratings by other patients
• Fluency in the patient's language (English, French and German are the most commonly supported languages within the destination countries).

Prices are as of 2010

Prices are approximate and not actual prices and include estimated airfare for patient and companion.  Prices will vary based upon many factors including hospital, doctor's experience, accreditation, currency exchange rates and more.  Not included are costs for meals, miscellaneous expenses and any hotel costs or tourism costs.

CONCLUSION

Medical tourism is likely to increase over the next decade as more patients are able to access the Internet and acquire information relevant to care offered overseas at an affordable price. While some patients will benefit immensely from treatment as a medical tourist, many legal and ethical issues will also arise. Nurses need to familiarize themselves with the benefits of medical tourism while also acknowledging its inherent dangers. Potential medical tourists will benefit from the services of a knowledgeable health professional in their home country who can discuss the many issues that relate to this medical tourism. It is expected that medical tourism will provide a new role for nurses as this healthcare trend expands around the world.

According to the medical tourism facilitators,the leading medical tourism destinations are India, Thailand, USA, Hungary and Malaysia.The countries seen as the leading source of patients both now and in the future are the USA, UK and the Russian Federation. Countries seen as providing the best overall service to patients are Thailand, India, and Singapore. In five years time, the same countries will still be the leading medical tourism destinations.

Moreover, the growth in India's medical tourism market will be a boon for several associated industries, including hospital industry, medical equipments industry and pharmaceutical industry.

 

 

About the Author

Author                        :M.Mohamed Rameez

Department                :II MBA (Final Year)

College                        haanish Ahmed College of Engineering Chennai.

E-mail Id                    :ramizsam99@gmail.com

 

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