Medical Tourism in Developing Countries

Promoting Medical Tourism ● 117interface between Cuban information networks and the global Internet. 84The INFOMED enables Cuba to engage in all four modes of internationaltrade in health services as described by GATS.PowerWhile power has yet to reach some 2 billion people across the world, 85 theseare not the individuals associated with the medical tourism sector. It is alsolikely that these are not people located in resort areas since modern touristfacilities require power. There are some exceptions, such as remote safaricamps where the lack of power is part of the décor, or a spa treatment wherecandlelight is required for atmosphere. As in the case of other infrastructure,LDC authorities are faced with the choice of powering resorts versus bringingelectricity into nontourist destinations. In countries with an activetourist agenda, the opportunity cost of forgoing the tourist region is enormous.As a result, in a tourist-friendly country such as South Africa, only11 percent of rural households have access to electricity (even though 70percent of the population resides there 86 ).Electrified regions of LDCs, whether they are tourist spots or capitalcities or remote farms, suffer from unreliable power supply that restrictsproduction. Blackouts and brownouts in power systems disrupt economicand private life. However, the large hospitals that promote medical tourismare shielded from such unreliability by their independent generators andpower supplies. Among the countries under study, only India and thePhilippines are below the LDC average of electricity consumption (569 and610 kilowatt hours per capita respectively, compared to 1,155). 87TransportTransportation systems are crucial for economic development insofar as theyenable the movement of goods, services, and resources, and thereby enablecommercial relations to thrive. A developed, maintained, and functioningtransportation system is likely to stimulate the flow of populations, not justinternational patients/tourists, but also migrants who respond to changingmanpower demands of the medical tourism industry. 88 In contrast, a deterioratinginfrastructure consisting of traffic congestion, lapsed maintenance ofroads and ports, and an outdated urban transport strategy restrains the flowof international patients and dampens their demand for medical tourism.With respect to the extent and maintenance of roads (table 5.4), againIndia and the Philippines have the least developed road system whileMalaysia and Jordan have the most developed. When it comes to another