Medical Tourism in Developing Countries

116 ● Medical Tourism in Developing CountriesAccording to table 5.4, over 90 percent of the populations in five countriesunder study have access to sanitation facilities. In the Philippines andSouth Africa, the percentages are 73 and 67 respectively, and only India(at 30 percent) falls below the global average of 48 percent. 82TelecommunicationsTo the extent that the end of the twentieth century has witnessed a revolution,it has been in telecommunications. With the increases in telephoneusage per capita, the ease with which international media has permeatedthe lives of distant communities, and the astonishing growth of the computerand Internet as personal and business tools, telecommunications havemodernized production and enhanced international competitiveness. Thisapplies to the tourist sector as much as any other. As a result of enhancedcommunication, potential medical tourists have the capacity to more readilygain information about their desired destinations and available procedures,as was discussed in chapter 3. Tour operators and airlines are better able toprovide pricing information and potential patients are better able to reapthe benefits of competition by comparison shopping. The Internet hasplayed an especially large role in government promotion of medical tourismby providing valuable information to both demanders and suppliers. Thus,telecommunications in general have succeeded in spreading informationabout distant locations faster and more thoroughly than any tool previouslyused by tourists and/or patients.Since cell phone networks are less expensive to build and easier to operatethan land lines, cellular phones per 1,000 people is an appropriateindicator of the spread of telecommunications, as is the extent of Internetusers per 1,000 people. The global average is 134 and 53 respectively, andaccording to table 5.4 all countries under study are significantly above thatwith the exception of India and Cuba. 83 India’s vast rural population, illiterateand remote from the technological urban centers, skews these data.Disaggregated statistics would certainly show a huge difference betweenurban and rural locations.Cuba’s low scores on both cellular phone and Internet usage (3 and 9people per 1,000, respectively) have a political component as the communistauthorities control personal usage. Nevertheless, Cuba stands out as aremarkable example of how telecommunications technologies can contributeby assisting both the national health-care system as well as promotingmedical tourism. Ann Seror’s study of the Cuban National Health CareTelecommunications Network and Portal (INFOMED) shows how it servesto integrate health-care information, research and education, as well as