Medical Tourism in Developing Countries

Offshore Doctors ● 55go on a two-week holiday and return with no proof that she underwentrhinoplasty.Others desire immediate gratification and instant happiness. If they arelow on the National Health Service waiting list, or if they still need yearsto accumulate savings for a procedure, medical tourism enables them toachieve satisfaction sooner.For most consumers, it is their concern with health and wellness thatdefines their taste for medical tourism. They are seeking longevity and sothey are controlling their weight and following low carb diets. In addition,the antismoking movement that decreased the number of smokers in theUnited States from 30 percent (1983) to 21 percent (2000) is spreading intoWestern Europe. This emphasis on healthy lifestyles and preventive medicineincreases the demand for spas that feature wellness. For this reason, spa,health, and fitness tourism is booming 57 (in the United States, the numberof spas grew by 52 percent between 1997 and 1999, and spa visits rose70 percent during that time 58 ). In addition to fitness, North Americans andWest Europeans are fascinated by alternative therapies (in 1997, 42 percentof Americans spent $21 billion on nontraditional medical therapies andproducts 59 ). With their longer life spans, international patients have moretime to consume products and services associated with health and wellness.Propensity for Medical TourismSome people are more inclined to travel abroad for medical tourism thanothers because they are more globally oriented. Through migration, travel,intermarriage, the Internet, and music, they have bought into globalization.Their global perspective gives them a higher propensity to seek medical careabroad. In addition to individuals, societies also have propensities for travelfor medical care. Business Life reports that Americans and Japanese seemleast bothered by long distances and vacation the farthest from home. 60A possible explanation for the difference among societies with respect totheir propensities to travel is the differing perspective on leisure. People wholive in societies where leisure exists, leisure activities are valued, and leisureorientedcommercial enterprises are developed are more likely to have apropensity to travel. Having sufficient leisure time is crucial for medicaltourism since medical procedures, with or without the tie-in vacation, taketime, as does the long-haul travel required to reach the destination.ExpectationsDecisions pertaining to demand of medical tourism are tied to expectationsabout the state of the economy at home and its ability to provide continuedemployment to the medical tourist. Questions of future employment and