Medical Tourism in Developing Countries

Offshore Doctors ● 59favorite destination of Americans; India’s Escorts Heart Institute claims40 percent of its foreign patients come from the United States, UK, Canada,Europe, and Africa; 76 and the Apollo Hospital Group says much of its foreigndemand comes from the Middle East and Africa. 77 In these cases, it islikely that there is a direct relationship between the time you spend gettingto a destination and the rewards you expect in return. Rewards take theform of successful surgery, exceptional wellness experience, an exotic vacation,et cetera.SpecializationIn addition to cultural affinity and distance, medical tourists also consider thespecialty offered by a facility or country. For some rare invasive or diagnosticprocedures, there are specialties that are simply not available elsewhere. TheMövenpick Resort and Spa at the Dead Sea in Jordan is touted as the onlyplace in the world where beneficial rays from the sun extend to this levelbelow the sea, and virtually no UV radiation can reach the skin causing skinproblems, especially psoriasis. 78 In India there is a particular method of hipreplacement, not available in the United States (or other Western countries),that makes recovery easier for the patient. 79 Cuba uses a unique procedurefor retinitis pigmentose (night blindness) in the Clinic Cira Garcia. 80 It alsoexcels in treatment of skin diseases that have been incurable in other countries.It has, for example, developed new procedures for vitiligo as well as newdrugs for it. Thailand first made a name for itself as an international centerfor sex change operations (gender reassignment surgery), during the 1970s.More recently, it has specialized in the “Thailand tuck” plastic surgery offeredby Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok. In India, the B. M. Birla HeartResearch Center in Calcutta is a specialty hospital dedicated to the diagnosis,treatment, and research related to cardiovascular diseases. Chile’s nature andthermal baths in the Los Lagos Region are considered unparalleled in thecontinent. The King Hussein Cancer Center, the only internationally accreditedhospital in Jordan, offers the most up-to-date cancer treatments in theregion. In Argentina, Mendoza has several clinics that specialize in eye surgeries,drawing both national and international patients.Although Costa Rica attracts medical tourists, it loses some of its domesticpatients because it lacks a specialization: in vitro fertilization. As a result ofprohibitive laws, patients who seek infertility treatment must go abroad. Forexample, in the Unidad De Fertilidad Del country (Bogota, Colombia), 80%of foreign patients are Costa Rican. 81 Also, some who have tried Westernmedicine and been unsatisfied with the results have turned to alternative medicine.One of these is traditional techniques and substances. Houyuan cited thisas one of the reasons many Westerners use traditional Chinese medicine. 82