Beijing entrepreneur Li Jinxun's first trip to Taiwan was a life-changing experience, but not because of the sightseeing. The 46-year-old took advantage of a short trip to the island last month to undergo minor cosmetic surgery at a clinic in Kaohsiung city, something he said had made him feel younger and better looking. "I'm very satisfied. I feel better already," he told AFP. Li, who runs a construction firm, is among a new wave of affluent Chinese eager to ...

It built its economy on ships, steel and semiconductors but now South Korea is pushing a new growth engine, a major share of the world's booming medical tourism market. The government's goal is one million foreign patients a year by 2020 and hospitals have launched aggressive marketing campaigns since they were allowed to advertise for foreign patients under a law that took effect last year. "Today demand for medical services is higher than ever and medical tourism is gro...

A recent report by Deloitte Center for Health Solutions on medical tourism points out that health care costs in the US are increasing at 8 per cent per year thus eating into corporate profits and household disposable income. It also says with a growing number of healthcare facilities in other countries now accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), perceptions about quality have undergone a radical shift. According to Deloitte’s report, two in five respondents surveyed said they would be interested in pursuing treatment abroad if quality was comparable and the savings were 50 per cent or more.

 

In Nov -2008 Wellpoint, the largest health benefits company in the US, announced a new international medical tourism product aimed at helping recession-struck American corporates cut their healthcare costs. The significant thing about this product is that members can opt for elective (non urgent and done by patient’s choice) procedures at healthcare facilities in India. Serigraph Inc., a Wisconsin-based specialty printer will become the first company to participate in Wellpoint’s pilot programme that kicks off in January 2009. Its employees have the choice of being treated at two Apollo group Hospitals, in Bangalore and New Delhi.

 

Another significant event last month(Nov-2008) was a tie-up between South Carolina-based Companion Global Healthcare, a medical travel facilitator, with Wockhardt Hospitals in Bangalore and Mumbai. The tie-up is noteworthy, as Vishal Bali, CEO of Wockhardt Hospitals, explains. Those insured with BlueCross BluesShield (one of the largest health insurer in the US), who are tied up with Companion Global Healthcare, can now exercise an option of getting treated at Wockhardt Hospitals.

 

Suddenly a whole new untapped market has opened up for Indian hospitals seeking to attract patients from the US — that of insured patients. Till now, corporate hospitals in India were pegging the opportunity size of patients from the US at 45 million uninsured individuals, or underinsured individuals. But now given the recessionary climate, and moves by US corporates to cut costs by outsourcing treatment overseas, India expects to be a key beneficiary. Pradeep Thukral, head of international marketing at Apollo Hospital, now estimates the opportunity size to have enlarged to at least 65 million Americans.

 

Worker healthcare costs are enormous for US companies and in fact, have been cited as one of the biggest reasons why American automakers, which are seeking $34 billion from the federal government, are in such trouble. Take General Motors, which has 479,000 retirees, who get an average pension of over $40,000 a year — together these retirees health insurance costs work out to about $5 billion a year. Now add to that the healthcare costs of serving employees, and it spells big expense for firms like GM. Obviously, then companies in other sectors are quickly exploring alternative options to cut healthcare costs before they join the troubled league of the automakers.

 

Rajesh Rao, CEO, of IndUShealth, a North Carolina-based company that facilitates medical travel of American patients to Indian hospitals, estimates that a company with 1,000 employees typically can hope to cut its healthcare costs by half a million dollars every year by outsourcing treatment options for its employees to India. Rao should know because even before the Serigraph announcement made headlines across the US, he has been helping American corporates send employees to India. Today, Rao, has at least 12 mid-sized employers availing his corporate programme (translating into 40,000-50,000 subscribers) and he says he has been tripling his volumes year on year since he started in 2005, when it was just a trickle.

 

As Rao points out the burgeoning healthcare costs have forced companies in the US to look at alternative options. “Out-of-pocket expenses have shot up phenomenally,” he says.

 

Even if you include airfare costs of a patient plus a companion, and accommodation costs in India, the cost of getting treated in India is significantly lower. For instance, US News & World Report, in its 12 May 2008 issue lists the cost of a coronary artery bypass surgery in a US hospital as anywhere between $70,000-133,000 whereas in India this same procedure would cost $7,000. Obviously even if you include airfare, accommodation, still there will be huge savings.

Global economic recession: A blessing for Indian medical tourism

There is good news for medical tourists! Most insurers retreat when it comes to covering medical procedures performed overseas, but times are changing as some insurers are exploring the option.

Twenty years ago, an American needing knee surgery probably wouldn’t think of jetting off to India for the operation. But times keep changing, health insurance costs keep rising, and Kumar Jagadeesan can cite a statistic that has led many patients to jump aboard a plane.

“A knee surgery operation in the U.S. can cost $45,000 to $50,000,” says Jagadeesan, the vice-president and CEO of Star Hospitals.net, a medical travel company. “In India, the cost would be $10,000, plus the price of a plane ticket,” which could be as little as $1,330 for a round-trip.

Star Hospitals.net is one of several medical travel companies advertising inexpensive services where patients fly to India, Thailand, the Philippines, and other countries to have surgery. With a few notable exceptions, however, insurance companies aren’t eager to cover these trips, even while they acknowledge the cost savings may be great. So for now, most patients must put up their own cash or put down a credit card.

Worries About Credentials

Why are insurers reluctant to send policyholders overseas? “One of the biggest issues is credentialing claims,” says Scott Edelstein, a lawyer with the global law firm Squire, Sanders & Dempsey. “They have to take reasonable measures that the providers overseas have the credentials to provide adequate care.”

Most medical travel companies, including Star Hospitals, currently rely on the Joint Commission International (JCI), an American nonprofit that accredits hospitals in the U.S., to help find suitable medical centers overseas. Lately the number of international hospitals getting the thumbs-up from the JCI has been growing. “There is great potential for growth, which is being driven by the build out of high quality hospitals on the global scene,” says Josef Woodman, the author of Patients Without Borders. Kenneth A. Powers, the JCI’s media relation’s manager, said that in 2005, there were just 76 JCI-accredited hospitals. Now there are more than 220.

JCI accreditation will probably help insurers overcome fears of getting sued by injured patients. But there are other issues to worry about. The insurers “have to make sure there will be smooth claims processing,” says Woodman. And, he says, there are concerns about continuity of care. “What happens when the patient comes back? Even if there are no complications with a procedure, how much is the insurance company willing to cover for physical therapy back in the U.S.?”

Few Legal Options

Despite these lingering issues, a few insurers have been bold enough to dip their toes into medical tourism in the past year. In March 2008, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of South Carolina signed alliances with seven overseas hospitals (BusinessWeek, 03/13/08). And more insurers are in talks with medical tourism companies, attests Rudy Rupak, founder of the medical travel agency Planet Hospital. “Right now we’re having active discussions with insurance companies about adding us to their plan design,” he says.

Getting more insurers involved might help ease patients’ reluctance to fly to another country for a procedure. But lack of coverage is not the only deal-breaker. “What happens if there’s an adverse effect?” asks Edelstein. “Will they have any recourse? That’s a very hot area in the legal arena. For the most part, those patients are not going to have much recourse in the U.S.”

Nor will patients have many legal options in the country where they had the operation. “Access to the court system in countries like India is not as good as in the U.S.,” Edelstein adds. “And even if you do get a trial, the judgments tend to be much lower than they would be in the U.S.”"

Nevertheless, Woodman and others are optimistic about the changing world of medical tourism and the role of health insurers. “When you think of medical tourism 20 years ago, you picture the Beverly Hills crowd of upper-crust men and women going to Brazil for a procedure and coming back home to brag about it,” says Woodman. “The profile has changed. It’s becoming a middle-class and working-class phenomenon, where folks are being driven to seek cost-effective alternatives.”

Much before the credit crisis rocked the American economy and the world, Michigan-based Jill Howard (name changed) made up her mind to visit India during the Christmas holidays this year for a joint replacement surgery. The 58-year-old engineer had planned her surgery in India, because she knew that the costs for the treatment would be much lower here compared to the US.

What ensued in the following months was an economic mayhem with the rising number of pink slips, sky-rocketing fuel prices, sinking stock markets and dimming sentiments. Everything, from food prices to air fares hit the roof.

Global crisis shuts funds tap for biotech sector

However, all this had no affect on Howard’s plans for her surgery in India. In fact, now she had all the more reasons to get the surgery done in India as a joint replacement surgery in the US would have cost her a stupendous $50,000 against only $8,000 in India.

“So even if I were to add the airline expenses, travel and stay, it would be cheaper to fly to India for the same treatment,” she said.

Like Howard, several medical industry experts, too, believe that it couldn’t be a better time to fly to India for medical reasons. In fact, many say that the recession was a boon in disguise for the country’s medical tourism sector. (Medical tourism refers to travel undertaken for medical care.)

‘Scope of $700 b rescue fund may be broadened’

According to experts, the immediate impact of any recession was cost cutting and cost rationalisation. So, with the US being the hardest hit by the current crisis, efforts to reign in costs would be the strongest in that country.

According to financial advisory, audit and consulting firm Deloitte, in 2007, about 4,50,000 patients from abroad visited India for medical treatment.

Experts peg the growth of the country’s medical tourism at about 30-35% in the financial year 2008-2009.

Slowdown to last 15 months: Nasscom

Vishal Bali, managing director of corporate hospital chain Wockhardt, said India has been getting about 3,000 patients from abroad every year. “And we see this rising by 35% this year.”

According to Ankur Bharti, consultant, Technopak Health, cost-cutting would be the main growth driver for the country’s medical tourism this year. “Cost-cutting would be the main reason why more international patients would come to India, especially from the US as medical costs are four to five times lesser here,” he said.

Anupam Sibal, group medical director, Apollo hospitals, said a bypass surgery in the US could cost about $75,000. The cost could be around $8,000-9000 in India.

It is ‘recession’ for one in seven of NSE-listed cos

“A liver transplant in the US would cost around Rs 1.5 crore. In UK, the cost would be around Rs 80 lakh. However, in India, a liver transplant costs only about Rs 18-20 lakh for adults and Rs 12-15 lakh for children. Since the difference is so huge, I think patients will prefer flying down to India,” Sibal said.

Kumar Menon, specialist, medical informatics and telemedicine at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) at Kochi in Kerala, said the medical tourism sector would remain constant and largely unaffected by the global economic turmoil.

“At AIMS, we specifically get a huge chunk of Malayalees settled abroad, especially in the Gulf region, coming home for medical treatment during the holidays. This trend would remain unaffected by the crisis.”

Industry professionals, however, warn that treatment involving cosmetic surgery, including areas like cosmetic dentistry, dermatological treatment and ayurvedic massages, will witness a decline.

Menon said the number of patients coming to India for those medical conditions that were not so intense and a treatment for which could wait, will see a decline.

However, areas such as cardiology, neurology, ophthalmology and oncology will continue to get more patients from abroad.

Face lifts and medical tourism: Top five questions answered

1) What is facelift surgery? Are the signs of aging in your face bothering you?

Then facelift surgery may be the right solution for you. A facelift is a surgical procedure to improve visible signs of aging in the face and neck and is technically known as rhytidectomy.

2) Who is the right aspirant for face-lift?

Facelift surgery is a good choice for you if:
• You have down to earth goals in mind to enhance your appearance.
• You are physically healthy and have an optimistic outlook.
• You don’t smoke. Finally you should not go for a facelift to fulfill someone else’s desires or to fit into someone else’s image.

3) Will non-surgical rejuvenation treatments achieve the same results as that of a facelift?

Non-surgical rejuvenation treatments cannot achieve the same results as that of a face lift surgery, but may help delay the time at which a facelift becomes appropriate and complement the results of surgery.

4) How Competent Is My Doctor? How Safe and Hygienic Is The Facility?

However, when traveling outside of your country for a face-lift it can be harder to verify the authenticity of the doctor, hospital and surgical methods. In some places, medical qualification standards are very different than they are in your country. There are many free services online to check out on the medical certification of your doctor such as the

• ASPS Member Surgeon Abroad program and Corresponding Members Service
• Doctors practicing outside the U.S. can be Board Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada/UK.
• Most important of all, check out with your friends who had already undergone face-lifts or the family doctor about the quality of treatment offered.

5) How do you protect yourself from complications after surgery?

• Make sure you are medically insured in your own country.
• Research all potential complications before surgery with your family doctor.
• Maintain contacts with the hospital and the doctor from where you underwent surgery.

Botox animation/Facelifts

What is cosmetic surgery?

Cosmetic surgery is a unique surgery that is done to enhance the physical appearance of our body. Cosmetic surgery utilizes some of the state of the art techniques in corrective procedures.

Cosmetic surgery in India: Overview

Cosmetic surgery package offered in many premier hospitals in India have attracted medical tourists and the elite Indians, as it is affordable.

Use of radioactive isotopes in small doses and utilization of Gamma camera in the treatment packages have added new dimension to the medical tourism in India.

Benefits of Cosmetic Surgery:

• Cosmetic surgery is a safe and smart way to get rid of certain shortcomings in our appearance. This makes us feel confident and enables us to lead happier lives.

• Cosmetic surgery is especially of use to those born with abnormal features like crooked noses, harelips, cleft lips, and so on. Cosmetic surgeries give these people a new lease of life as they do not have to put up with nasty remarks and ridicule.

• Cosmetic surgery takes years off our faces and other body parts. It can tighten the skin texture leading to an overall younger look. This is essential for people in professions, which require a person to look a certain way such as flight attendants, client service executives, and the like.

• Cosmetic surgery is also useful for those who have been through fatal accidents that have left them with a disfigured appearance. Cosmetic surgery helps such patients look the way they used to look before the tragedy struck.

Where is cosmetic surgery done in a specialized way?

In India, Apollo Hospitals excels in drawing the maximum number of successful cases in Cosmetic Surgery. Plastic surgeons of Apollo Hospitals are also heavily involved in clinical research to find new and better methods of surgery. They also volunteer to give reconstructive aid around the world.

VM plastic surgery in Chandigarh

where Dr V D Singh and his team offer specialized services.

To be continued….

TV Programs Influence Kids to Opt for Cosmetic Surgery

The Indian healthcare industry has grown manifold during the last few years. Although there is a yawning divide between healthcare facilities available in rural and urban India and in the demand and supply of healthcare services across the country, overall the Indian healthcare infrastructure is fast improving with initiatives by the government and the private sector. The entry of private players has further spurred the development of the healthcare sector.

The striking feature of the sector is that it has the potential to grow at a much faster rate in the foreseeable future and will present new ‘ sectors of opportunity’ within healthcare, which will emerge as growth drivers. The Indian healthcare industry overview indicates it has the same exponential growth potential as software and pharmaceutical industries in the country. Till now only 12% of the opportunities in the Indian healthcare sector have been employed.

With abundant opportunities for businessmen, equipment makers and service providers to invest in curative and preventive services and possibilities of investing in medical infrastructure and medical tourism, it becomes imperative for providers to get a feel of what’ s happening in the industry to make informed decisions on investment options.

The India Healthcare Trends 2008 aims to be an informed view of trends and drivers for the Indian Healthcare industry by delving into how providers like hospitals and physicians conduct their business and the issues they face in doing so, as well as dissect it in terms of what healthcare means to the end consumer.

A few years ago one frequently heard of patients from the middle east coming to India for quality medical treatment, but of late there seem to be a lot of people from developed countries like the US, UK and Canada coming here.

At first health insurance was thought of as an expense and while that does seem to play a role in driving medical tourism to poorer countries…to my surprise I found out that there are other complex reasons…

Patients in Canada (Canada has a free government run health system, something which India can only dream of) have to wait even for an x-ray or an MRI!! I couldn’t quite believe it because here, even though we are a poorer nation, people can can get an MRI almost instantly, if they can afford it. And for an operation a Canadian might have to wait for about 18 weeks. As its free, everyone has to wait, money or not. However Canada’s dental health system runs on private insurance and patients generally get faster treatment.

The Americans feel their system is better because it runs on private health insurance. But its been exposed to some extent by Michael Moore’s documentary Sicko. The film shows how “middle-class families cannot afford medical care and profit-driven insurance giants go to extraordinary lengths to limit payments.” He has also detailed the number of people without insurance and partial insurance and also deaths due to delays in treatment or lack of treatment.

But this is the system that India is heading for! Private health insurance companies here are struggling to keep their head above water and are being finicky about payments. Seeing America’s plight, I wonder what the future holds for us. Right now industry analysts here are saying that once the system stabilizes and more people join the health schemes (few people can afford private health insurance in India) then the insurance companies will make money and everything will be all right.

”Medindia.com or Medindia.net” is a premier health and medical website that offers an opportunity to reach a large online audience of consumers, physicians, healthcare professionals and executives worldwide. ‘Networking for health’ is its mission statement.

Medindia ranks among the top health related websites in the world in terms of traffic, reach, search engine ranking, as well as quality and scope of medical content and news.

Medindia receives over 10 million page views and over 1 million visitors per month (2007). Since being founded over 10 years ago – it has over 23,000 registered members. It has uploaded over 300,000 pages. It provides almost 40 health news items daily. There are over 35,000 news and research items related to health. It has a team of over 50 programmers, designers and content editors.

All the information can be accessed free. Doctors, hospitals, medical conferences and NGO’s are allowed to host free pages on the site. Over 1500 homepages of doctors, hospitals, medical conferences and NGOs have been created. Its electronic medical record is another very popular area that is used by the members. Its health news, disease information, health calculators, simple inter-actives, animations, diet, travel, lifestyle and wellness sections are very popular.

Medindia can be broadly divided into the following sub-sections-

1. Consumers
2. Doctors
3. Medical Education
4. Pharmaceuticals or Business
5. Forum and Blogs
6. Medical Directories
7. Lifestyle and Wellness
8. Travel and Health
9. Health Insurance
10. Complimentary Medicine
11. Medical Website search and Ranking
12. Medical Tourism
13. Diet and Nutrition

Each section is content heavy and is a portal by itself. Medindia also sells medical books, non-prescription drugs and health products through its website.

Medindia has syndicated its health contents to many top brands over the years. Rediff.com entered into an alliance for health contents with medindia a few years back. The health section of Rediff is available on www.rediff.com/health. However currently it has not renewed its contract.

People visit it frequently to do an in-depth study on a health related topic.

Not many people know that medindia also promotes complimentary medicine. This section of medindia has topics related to Yoga, Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Reiki, Siddha,

Some people have said medindia is like an ‘ocean’ because of the levels and depth of some of the contents. The site keeps growing and produces high quality contents.

Google Gadgets and Yahoo Widgets

The latest medindia additions have been the Google Gadgets and Yahoo widgets that it has uploaded of its popular sections like health calculators and health news. The links to these interesting free downloads are as follow:

Google Gadgets–

1. For current Health News and Research – If you are a reporter or a researcher of health topics or if you like keeping tab of the latest advances in the field of medicine – you will find this an interesting utility to download.

http://www.desktop.google.com/plugins/i/medindiahealthnews.html?hl=en

2. For calculating Ideal Body Weight – If you are dieting or a nutrition expert or a dietician or like to keep a tab on your own and your family member’s weight – this utility will be useful

http://www.desktop.google.com/plugins/i/idealweightcalculato.html?hl=en

Yahoo Widgets

1. Ideal Body WeightCalculator

‘Ideal Body Weight’ for adults is a useful tool to check the appropriate weight against the height of a person. Remember the secret of good health is to maintain an ideal weight.

http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/idealweightcalculator

2. Inspirational Quote for the Day

A widget on ‘Inspirational quotation pops up a quote daily to inspire, motivate and encourage you to look at positive side of life.

http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/inspirational-quote-for-the-day

3. Medindia Health News

Keep yourself updated with the latest in the field of healthcare through this dynamically powered Widget from medindia’s news and research team. Medindia.com has over 35,000 health news items covering most of the diseases.

Useful utility for a reporter or a researcher of health topics. If you like keeping tab of the latest advances in the field of medicine – you will find this an interesting utility to download.

http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/medindia-health-news

4. BMI Calculator

If you know your height and weight then calculate your ‘Body Mass Index (or BMI)’ and find out your future health risk for lifestyle diseases.

Useful widget for weight conscious people, dieticians, doctors to keep it tucked somewhere on their desktop.

http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/bmi-calculator

5. Population Clock

Population clock gives the approximate World and Indian population. Population clock is dynamically updated based on birth and death rate.

http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/population-clock

Medical or Health tourism covers a wide spectrum of medical services and is the most popular form of vacationing today. Wellness and healthcare is blended with leisure, fun and relaxation through medical tourism. Medical tourism provides a ‘cost effective’ solution to off shore patients needing surgery and other specialized treatment. Medical tourism is being made accessible by the corporate sector involved in medical care as well as the tourism industry. The idea of a healthy holiday is to offer you an opportunity to get away from your daily mundane routine and get into a relaxing ambience. Medical tourism provides an avenue to enjoy the beach and the mountains and also improve your quality of life in terms of health and general well being. It is like rejuvenation on all levels – physical, mental and emotional. Let us now get into a specific area, which is in great demand in India!

Dental Care in India

There are several Dental Care packages available. However, solutions will be based on the requirements of the person and his holiday needs. There is a huge difference between the pricing (about 7/8 times when we speak of Top-end dentists in US and India for the same dental treatment procedures. Some of the facilities offered by the dental clinics are:

• Dental Scanning – Intra mouth
• Whitening of teeth
• Surgical Intervention under general anesthesia
• Prosthesis on the implant
• Vertical and horizontal bone grafting
• Ceramic caps without gold under microscopic control
• Palatal orthodontics
• Fluoride treatment for children
• Gum Grafting
• Over denture
• Combined prostheses with milling
• Maxillary surgery

(to be continued)

India is considered the leading country promoting medical tourism-and now it is moving into a new area of medical outsourcing,” where subcontractors provide services to the overburdened medical care systems in western countries.
India’s National Health Policy declares that treatment of foreign patients is legally an “export” and deemed “eligible for all fiscal incentives extended to export earnings.” Government and private sector studies in India estimate that medical tourism could bring between $1 billion and $2 billion US into the country by 2012. The reports estimate that medical tourism to India is growing by 30 per cent a year. India’s top-rated education system is not only churning out computer programmers and engineers, but an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 doctors and nurses each year.
The largest of the estimated half-dozen medical corporations in India serving medical tourists is Apollo Hospital Enterprises, which treated an estimated 60,000 patients between 2001 and spring 2004. It is Apollo that is aggressively moving into medical outsourcing. Apollo already provides overnight computer services for U.S. insurance companies and hospitals as well as working with big pharmaceutical corporations with drug trials. Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, the chairman of the company, began negotiations in the spring of 2004 with Britain’s National Health Service to work as a subcontractor, to do operations and medical tests for patients at a fraction of the cost in Britain for either government or private care.

Apollo’s business began to grow in the 1990s, with the deregulation of the Indian economy, which drastically cut the bureaucratic barriers to expansion and made it easier to import the most modern medical equipment. The first patients were Indian expatriates who returned home for treatment; major investment houses followed with money and then patients from Europe, the Middle East and Canada began to arrive. Apollo now has 37 hospitals, with about 7,000 beds. The company is in partnership in hospitals in Kuwait, Sri Lanka and Nigeria. Western patients usually get a package deal that includes flights, transfers, hotels, treatment and often a post-operative vacation. Apollo has also reacted to criticism by Indian politicians by expanding its services to India’s millions of poor. It has set aside free beds for those who can’t afford care, has set up a trust fund and is pioneering remote, satellite-linked telemedicine across India.

What is Medical Tourism?

Medical Tourism or Health Tourism is a new concept where a patient travels to and also vocations in another country for medical treatment in order to get faster and better treatment and also to save costs.

What are the types of medical procedures that tourists usually seek in India?

Medical tourist’s choice destination is India for knee replacement and other orthopaedic treatments, besides heart surgey, cosmetic surgery, eye care, dental treatment or any other specialized treatment like infertility treatment for that matter and any procedure that is usually not covered by insurance or has a long waiting time in their
home country.

What is the cost and savings compared to the costs in UK or USA country?

Cost for an individual ’s treatment varies according to their needs. A patient from USA or UK saves 40% to 60% on an average on a knee replacement surgery, which would otherwise cost 30000$. A favorable currency exchange rate has enabled an economical medical package feasible for the patients from abroad. Hence the saving potential is huge which is the most important factor for the patients to seek treatment in India.

The potential cost savings for medical tourists are huge and is one of the most important factors in seeking treatment in India.

Are these costs savings due to lower standards of medicine in India?

The Indian medical standards match up to the highly prescribed international standards.

The steep reduction in medication costs are due to favorable currency conversion rates and lower operating costs in India. Indian surgeons and doctors are known for their skill and research throughout the world. Many highly qualified doctors have had some form of training from abroad specially USA and UK.

India has over 150000 medical tourists each year and this figure is rising at a high pace. Some recent programs recently on BBC and CNBC have reinstated the fact that medical tourism is the best idea if – you want to save costs, and get the best treatment to be done at your time and convenience.

Indian hospitals have gained monopoly in medical tourism and Blue Ridge Paper Products Inc. benefits director Bonnie Blackley interestingly remarked–”The employees don’t care, because where else they are going to go? Well India of course!

Blue Ridge is just one of several U.S. companies offering “medical tourism” medical plans — will send one of its employees to a New Delhi hospital next month for a pair of surgeries that will save the company $10,000 over what the procedures would cost in America.

The hospitals have a monopoly,” says North Carolina-based Blue Ridge

As medical costs in the United States continue to rise, more and more employers are sending employees in need of costly surgeries overseas to receive treatment.

A number of U.S. employers that fund their own health insurance plans have started sending their employees to countries such as India and Thailand for operations that can costs tens of thousands of dollars more in the United States.

Tens of thousands of Americans have begun traveling overseas for costly medical procedures in recent years, since the savings can be significant. For example, Arthur Milstein, chief physician at HR consulting giant Mercer Health & Benefits, says a coronary bypass surgery at Apollo Hospitals in India costs about $6,500 — compared to the same surgery that costs an average of $60,400 in California.

Hospital associations in the United States say medical tourism will only make healthcare price problems worse, however, many Americans have no other choice but to travel abroad for surgeries they would otherwise be unable to afford.

The problem in “America is though it has the best medical treatment,” much of it is inaccessible was the comment of the founder of Malibu insurance company.

The first poly-clinic of Star Health and Medical Tourism Pvt Ltd, an associate of Star Health Insurance, India’s only stand alone health insurance company, has been opened in Chennai under the umbrella of Star Clinics.  Mr A.G. Gajapathy, Executive Director of the company said that this move is in line with the plan to establish multi-specialty outpatient treatment facilities in major cities across the country. Tier II and tier III cities will also be covered by the city.  At present Star Clinics have 24 polyclinics in Tamil Nadu and one in Kerala. “The company aims to provide primary healthcare to rural and semi-urban public, and hope to add another six clinics by the end of August. The proposal is to open 100 clinics in the four southern States by the end of this year. “We also hope to set up several such clinics across the country by the end of next fiscal.” The company spends Rs 5 lakh per clinic on an average. “All our clinics, barring a few, are tele-networked.” said Mr Gajapathy. —  

The results of the Medical Tourism survey reveals that improvement in the Indian health image would be the biggest gain (84%) with an increase in medical tourism. Nearly the same number felt that it would also lead to improvement in health care.  However, less than half (50%) felt that medical tourism would deny health care to the local population. 70% of the people (766 people participated in the survey) were of the opinion that this would make doctors greedy. 

Is health insurance a necessity in India?

 

The results of the survey have indicated that health insurance has become a necessity in view of the escalating cost of medical treatment, which is making it beyond the reach of the common man.

  About 400 people participated in the survey, out of which 93% considered that health insurance should be compulsory for all employers. Eighty-six per cent people voted in favor of covering pregnancy under medical insurance, 89% wanted free medical aid for people above the age of 65 and 67% people wanted that it should be free for the poor.  There was an inclination towards foreign participation but only 42% people voted in favor of private ownership. Seventy-three per cent people wanted it to be cashless. The results thus suggest that in case of a medical emergency, health insurance provides much needed financial relief.

 

A resident of USA traveling to India for getting cosmetic surgery at a fraction of the cost that he may have paid in USA is just one example of what medical tourism is. Medical Tourism is an emergent concept worldwide where people travel to another country for medical treatment at much lower prices for various reasons.  Getting treatment in another country comes with other benefits  The most evident reason is low cost of treatment.  Another important reason for traveling to India and other countries to take treatment is to avoid the long waiting lists that exist in countries like USA and UK for getting treatments under national health schemes.  Immediate treatment is available in countries like India  Cheaper shorter holidays along with the medical treatment.  Quality service from qualified doctors and good environment are also other benefits.  

The hospitals/clinics in these medical tourist destinations also tend to be of high quality with highly experienced doctors (most of whom have foreign education and credentials).

 Key highlights of Medical tourism; Ayurvedic and relaxation therapies are incorporated at a low cost with their ongoing treatments.  The most favorite medical tourism destinations worldwide currently are:  

India: Especially for heart surgery, hip resurfacing, cosmetic surgery and high-end     surgeries. English as a primary language is also an advantage.

Hong Kong: High quality infrastructure and good quality doctors

 Thailand: Low labour costs resulting in lower treatment costs  Singapore: Has highly accredited hospitals and a very high quality infrastructure   

Currently Philippines, Brunei, Cuba, Mexico, Brazil, United Arab Emirates and Malaysia are included in the list.

 Important points to note:   1) Having English-speaking people on the other end is always an advantage as it removes any form of miscommunication. 2) Please make sure before traveling that you have the appropriate VISA for the country you wish to travel to. 3) Medical treatments of severe nature normally require a separate medical VISA. 4) Please get appropriate vaccinations before travel. Consult your local health bureau or physician for more information. 5) Make sure that all reservations and appointments are fixed in advance.  

Like 45 million uninsured Americans, Williams didn’t know how he could pay for a knee replacement surgery after five decades of living with an aching knee. Finally Health care came to his rescue and enabled him to get a successful knee replacement surgery in India.  William Nilsson took his high school games knee injuries very easy. To add injury to the wound he tore his knee ligaments last year while playing golf,  A ray of hope dawned with Health base that helped him find low cost but high quality treatment in India. Health care ensured that Williams could play golf again.  William Nilsson is one of the many American patients uninsured and underinsured who seek help at Health base every year. Health base, arranges first-class treatment for them at major internationally accredited hospitals in India. It is a Massachusetts based medical tourism facilitator connecting patients to leading medical facilities overseas,  The Health base network includes Mexico, Thailand and Singapore, and continues to expand its network to Turkey, Panama, and Costa Rica. William Nilsson and his wife were happy to recall their amazing experience in India. He said that everything about the quality of care he received at Wockhardt hospital in India was great. He concluded that the quality of treatment and care in Indian hospital could be rated as a 10 and the doctors were very professional.  The cost of surgical care at Health base’s is typically a fraction of that found in the U.S., A knee replacement surgery costs only $6,500 in India, whereas it costs over $30,000 in the US,. The treatment packages offered by Health base provide a savings of thousands of dollars even if travel expenses are taken into account.  Healthbase works with only hospitals that maintain best practices such as JCI/JCAHO accreditation. Healthbase connects patients to leading hospitals around the world, through a secure web portal. It is certainly a one-stop source for global medical services.