Medical Tourism in Developing Countries

Index ● 243standards of living, improvedinfrastructure and 113suicide tourism 42suppliers, price-reducing competitionbetween 97–98supply 65–93increased, reasons for 4international dimension of 83–91private sector in 74–79public sector in 66–74public-private sector cooperationin 79–82tie-ins and 91–93TTaiwan, R&D in 110tariff barriers 129tax incentives 181–82tax law 123–24tax policy 73tax revenues 181–82technological change, capitalismand 126telecommunications 4, 116–19development of 25growth of 78telediagnosis/teleanalysis 4telemedicine 178–79followup with 79growth of 78WTO classification of 78Thailand 2agricultural sector in 15as America’s favoritedestination 58–59board-certified physicians in 151border medicine in 49currency fluctuation in 98distance to 58ease of doing business in 128economic development in 15, 18foreign investment in 85–86foreign patients in 3health indicators in 171, 171tinfrastructure in 112investment by 86JCI accredited institutions in 149tliteracy rate in 102medical tourism incentives in 136medical tourism marketingstrategies 63medical tourism tie-ins and 91–92pharmaceutical standards in 146physician licensing in 150price of services in 50private sector in 75public sector in 72specializations in 59telemedicine in 78, 178tourist appeal of 134water access in 115See also Bumrungrad Hospitalthird worldterminology for 190n66See also destination countries;developing countriesTOKEN, 107toothache tourism 42tourismabundant factor of productionin 30dependency theory and 33–34in destination countries 18–19, 19tas economic force 21elasticity of demand for 37globalization and 24government planning in 69–70international regulation of90–91international trade in 28–30long-stay 46medical tourism as fastest-growingsegment of 2multiplier effect and 32–33non-medical 86–87in public sector economics 181,220n40secondary demands of 30–31statistics on 135ttrends in 194n2