Medical Tourism Industry In India

checkup tourism constancy In IndiaChapter 2 LITERATURE REVIEW2.1 aesculapian exam exam exam examination touristry2.1.1 design to medical examination examination examination touristryThe word aesculapian means sermon of illness, overthrow or injuries. In general, Tourism means breaking for pleasure. According to humanness Tourism Organization(WTO), the word Tourism compromises of the activities of soulfulnesss traveling to and staying in place out-of-door their usual environment for leisure, business and new(prenominal) purposes. Understanding of word health check and tourism individu whollyy is not sufficient to define Medical Tourism. Medical Tourism is combination of various and definite activities and clear understanding of much(prenominal) activities is essential. (Dr Prem, aesculapian tourism)Considering the above sets of definitions, the fol depresseding can be observed When a person travels across the border and outside their usual environment, to see k medical exam service, the travel portion of the trip travel is called medical travel, and upon arrival, such person is called medical tourist, and such activities which includes utilization of medical services by the medical tourist, be it select or indirect hospitality, cultural exposure or site-seeing, is called Medical Tourism.Hence, Medical Tourism could be defined as The Medical Tourism is the set of activities in which a person travels often commodious distance or across the border, to avail medical services with direct or indirect engagement in leisure, business or other purposes. Medical travel refers to the inter interior(a) phenomenon of individuals traveling, often great distances, to access health sell services that atomic number 18 otherwise not available collectible to high damages, long waiting lists or limited health c ar capacity in the country of origin. (UNESCAP, 2007)Five key driving the increase popularity of medical tourismTechnologyTechnological cor rectments drive medical tourism, same(p) to a greater extent efficient global transportation and communication systems. The flattening of the world by the network and technology in medical industry be up(a) the quality of services.Patient access to health k instanterledge on the Internet has increased knowledge and choices. Electronic communications and exchange of health information argon faster and easier. termsWhen patients dont bind health insurance or their health insurance does not pay for all the anguish they need, the cost of the like is shifted to those patients with health insurance. This is cognize as Cost Shifting. The competition in industry is not operating on the proper objectives. The focus should be on providing care to patients, not to gain economy of other countries or build the tourism domain from needy to sick patients. Moreover, the cost of medical treatment in developed countries is extremely high. Hence, private, social and collective health schem es are rattling costly. The above pay model is shifting to individuals. Therefore, Cost is another driving factor.NeedThe emergence of the new consumer needs, like avoiding waiting queues to get medical treatment or the possibility to have the modish medical treatment, requires new solutions which are not available in consumers base of operations country. So, Need is another driving factor.changeHospitals are adopting the more(prenominal) opulence hotel concept rather than a conventional unexciting general wards. after(prenominal) the surgical procedure, there is the opportunity to engage in attractive tourism, which is surely a better change for patient. For example, a patient may pay back a safari trip in entropy Africa after an orthopedical surgery, a Taj Mahal trip after eye surgery in India, and a Mayan cultural experience after cosmetic surgery in Mexico. Hence, Change is another key factor.DemographicsDemographic drivers such as an aging world due to baby boomers causing significant strain on national healthcare system are a driving factor.2.1.2 Why subscribe India?Medical tourism or health tourism is on a rise in India. It is starting to be considered as wiz of the a cycle per second attractive locations for medical tourism. As per a research report stentorian Medical Tourism in India Indias medical tourism industry is dismissal to grow by 27% in the time period 2009-2012. In 2007 alone, India received 450,000 medical tourists and is expected to receive close to 1.1 million medical tourists in 2012. Currently India has 16 JCI Accredited Hospitals across the country.Some of the roughly sought after procedures by medical tourists in India are choice medicine, bone-marrow transplant, cardiac bypass surgery, eye surgery, orthopedic surgery, In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or Infertility intercession and alveolar consonant procedures (such as dental implants, veneers etc.) comm scarcely known an Dental tourism. Cosmetic surgery or cosmetic procedures and dental tourism are on a rise in India as well.So what are the reasons to choose India as your medical tourism destination? commonwealthNo. of Foreigners treated in (2002)FromStrengthThailand6,00,000USA, UKCosmetic surgery, organ transplant, dental treatments, Joint ReplacementJordhan1,26,000Middle EastOrgan Transplants, Fertility treatments, cardiac careIndia1,00,000Middle East, UK, USACardiac care, Joint successorMalaysia85,000USA, ramp up countriesCosmetic SurgerySouth Africa50,000USACosmetic Surgery, Dental TreatmentFirst and fore nigh is the cost factor. The cost savings are immense. As per the report by Booming Medical Tourism in India, medical tourist can save up to 60%-95% on their treatment cost by getting their treatment done in India.The succor most important factor according to me is the technology and world(prenominal) standards. draw Hospitals and healthcare facilities in India have the latest equipment and technology, which is at par with the medica l facilities in the developed world. With the rise in medical tourism, more and more hospitals are investing in the latest equipments and getting globally recognize certifications, such as JCI. As per Deloitte report, India has 10 JCI certified hospitals in 2007, and in 3 years India has added 6 more to the list.The doctors in India have the expertise, which again is at par with the doctors in the developed countries. Today Indian doctors in every field are recognized in the world association for their work and contributions. Most of the doctors working in the big name hospitals have degrees and certifications from US and Europe.Medical tourist get priority treatment in Indian hospitals as opposed to waiting for weeks or horizontal months in their own country. This is a huge advantage as patients wanting to put up with say a hip or a knee replacement will have to bare the pain till they are not scheduled for treatment, which fewtimes can take up to 3 months.No language barrie r. As English is one of the most used languages in India, medical tourists dont feel lost in this country. Also, if you are from a non-English verbalize country, translators are provided to make your stay as comfortable as possible. collect to its beautiful culture, history and increased reorganization and popularization of yoga, Ayurveda and meditation more and more people are flocking to India for mental and physical peace.Andhra Pradesh is one of the most giving state in India for medical tourism as more of the big name medical centers have opened their facilities in this city. break apart cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Ahmedabad are quickly catching up to attract international patients.Andhra Pradesh is considered to be the 5th bountifulst state in India and the largest State in South India. It has a population of 76, 210, 007 and a literacy rate of 45.11% (Andhra Pradesh tourism, 2010). It has become a study IT hub. However its growth with respect to the medical to urism is very slow. Andhra Pradesh is very popular for many non-invasive therapies like Yoga and Ayurveda. Apart from these tow alternative therapy, naturopathy, traditional healing systems to a fault play major role in create medical tourism in the state. Recently it is competing with other states as some world class hospitals are established in the state. Some of the examples for these are Apollo hospitals, L V Prasad eye hospital, Nizamia general Hospital etc (India line, 2010). It is stressed that the medical tourism is not achieving prospects in Andhra Pradesh when compared to departments, IT and biotechnology. The failure in the medical tourism in Andhra Pradesh is attributed to the lack of synergy between the health and tourist department. It is that noticed that, the number of conflicting patients coming to Andhra Pradesh is just not even 1% to that of Bangkok (Hindu, 2010). It is clearly stated by many hospitals directors that the establishment has to take necessary str ategic approach in order to improve medical tourism in Andhra Pradesh.Apollo, Wockhardt, Fortis wellnesscare, Max India, The Global Hospitals Group, MIOT Hospitals and some of the prominent hospitals catering to medical tourists. Apart from this, there are a large number of small clinics such as eye clinics, dental clinics, whisker loss clinics, IVF clinics, message and spa clinics that exist across the country that are catering to medical tourist who are interested in electoral surgery. (Nikhil Lamba, ClinicsOfWorld)2.3 Collaboration and PartnershipMedical tourism operators can be split into two groups. First, there are medicalcenters such as hospitals and clinics. Medical centers that actively attract international patients are not involved only in the medical procedure itself, but are, in many cases, also responsible for all patient logistics from arrival to release. Often the hospitals involvement already starts before arrival with the processing of the visa requirements and only ends after departure with patient follow up.The second group consists of medical tourism facilitators who go like agentsand associated service providers. These are often smaller companies with just a fewpeople on their payroll and most of them have allot their risk by dealing with hospitals and clinics in a number of antithetical countries. Those medical tourist agents which are dealing exclusively with hospitals of only one country or region are exposed to the same risks as the hospitals with whom they work.These facilitators offer global health care options that will enable internationalpatients, primarily from the United States of America and Europe, to access worldhealth care at a fraction of the cost of domestic care. By merchandising a type of medical value travel, they focus particularly on the self-insured patient. Some companies charge clients a flat rate commission or a percentage of the total cost of care. Others do not instanter charge customers, but are paid b y the hospitals to which their clients travel for care.Health care travel packages can include all cost associated with medical care, air and ground transportation, hotel accommodation, use of a cell phone in the destination country, practical assistance from a local company phonation at the health care facility, travel arrangements for a companion, stays in nearby resorts during the post-operative recovery period and side trips to tourist destinations.2.4 Promotional Strategiesembodied hospitals in Andhra Pradesh brought in five-star facilities and hi-tech medicine. Both the state administration and the corporate sector see the benefits of synergy for profits and have hence evolved separate as well as combined promotional strategies (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006). The state is proposing Medical Tourism in its own institutions. It invests directly in infrastructure and tourism to push its indemnity support to the corporate sector in earning foreign exchange by treating Medical Tourism a s a trade. This encourages all the players directly or indirectly involved in Medical Tourism to invest and expand their businesses corporate hospitals, the aviation industry, private tour services, travel operators, the hotel and hospitality industries (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006).The state has several interests behind its promotional strategies for Medical Tourism. angiotensin converting enzyme is medical diplomacy to strengthen international relationships and friendships with neighbouring countries. Behind this seeming selflessness lies the motive of enhancing economic growth, by not only commodifying medical care and supporting the private medical industry but also promoting investments in sectors supportive of MT. These include the Indian Healthcare Federation, private and public insurers, policy institutions, and the industry players mentioned above (CII-McKinsey 2002).Tie-ups within the hospitals, hotels and tour operators are being promoted and are on the rise (CII-McKinsey 2 002). Hyderabad, capital city of Andhra Pradesh has opened international airports and now offer direct flights from abroad to ease travel for patients. Yashoda hospital in Hyderabad has an airport kiosk and is planning a helipad on the terrace to rustle their patients (Shaffi et al 2007).Asia has become a prominent destination for global medical tourists. Within it, India has a relative advantage, and Andhra Pradesh is evident from the institutions involved and the services offered as well as the low cost of treatment (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006). Its so-called win-win attitude however, is based on the assumption that services for the haves and have-nots are totally self-sustaining of each other and the disconnect is rational. It is this very assumption that is flawed. In its essay to fill its coffers through with(predicate) MT, the organisation has underplayed the obvious contradiction between a vast uncared for majority and an unethical focus on profits through MT (Shaffi et al 2007). It has ignored many of the underlying negative implications of MT such as shift of subsidies to the private sector and extremely low inputs in public sector healthcare (Roy Choudhury and Dutta 2004).India has 16% of the worlds population, 18% of the worlds deathrate and 20% of the worlds morbidity and our public expenditure on health is lock in 1% of gross domestic product (GDP). Budget 2010 is no diametric from the previous years (Bali 2010) (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006).Added to this is the incoming evidence of inequity and rising be of medical care. The huge gap permitted between thesalary scales of public and private professionals has boost the movement of personnel from the former to the latter. This is particularly true of the shortage of nurses in the public sector, who are leaving for private and overseas jobs (Shaffi et al 2007).Attracted by the higher scales and an open system of consultancy, experienced specialists too are travel away from public sector. While exp erienced doctors in the public sector are allowed to work in private institutions that benefit from their experience and fame, the government has no innovative policy to retain competent professionals or to set salaries and employment conditions across sectors (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006).Marginalising the concept of comprehensive primary healthcare by limiting primary-level care to at best First Referral Units (FRUs) and district hospitals denies ordinal care to the less-privileged unless they are ready to sell off their assets. This is reflected in the payload of debt due to illness treatment, which has increased to 40% of the total debt as per the 52nd round National Sample Survey (2000).Another critical dimension of this development industry is the probable impact it has on the countries it serves. Already there are concerns expressed in the US. Asian MT is seen distinguishablely by different stakeholders. The insurance companies and medicalOrganizations see its outsourcing pote ntial for lowering their own costs and enhancing profits. The uninsured and those who cannot afford their own private services see it as an opportunity. The state sees it as a mechanism for savings and as a price control mechanism in its medical market (Qadeer 2009 Gupta 2006).