Academic Year 2013-2014 3 rd Semester: Module 713 Case study Medical Tourism Class 703_E
Introduction This case study will analyse three different reports based on the topic of medical tourism. It is a quite new trend for people who cannot afford treatments in their home country to go abroad to have medical treatments and surgeries at a lower price and with a service quality which almost reach the same standards of the developed countries. The Asian countries are the main destinations for medical tourism as they have high- qualified doctors and their prices are unbeatable by those which are applied in the developed countries. Summary of results of the three studies Medical tourism was seen as a niche market during the last decade but with the rapid growth it has made, medical tourism is becoming a flourishing industry. The globalization and the drop of the flight prices which makes travels more affordable have helped this fast growth. People usually think about globalization as something only applicable for business and economy but a new trend that is now growing is actually medical tourism. As the costs of medical treatments are getting higher year by year, more people are facing difficulties to afford the medical treatments in their own country. Medical bills have even become one of the major causes of bankruptcy in the United States, even affecting people who have health insurances at the time they get ill. Taking the example of the United States, the cost of medicine and treatments has not only a negative impact on the individuals but it also affects the national economy by reducing the growth. As the costs of medicine and medical intervention are very high in the United States as shown on the table 1 and the demand for medical tourism is growing. Indeed, many people without health insurance or with restrictive rules struggle to have access to medical treatments and medical tourism represent an attractive alternative to the conventional American health system. 2
Even if the costs are lower in foreign countries, there is still a concern about the quality of the foreign establishments. Despite the fact that the Joint Commission International (JCI) has been named to accredit the hospitals in the world, there are still inquiries about the quality of these establishments as the standards of the JCI have considerable difference with the US standards. These arguments are American patients have also complained about countered by the example that the death rate for heart surgery is lower in the Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre in Delhi and Faridabad in India than in many hospitals in the United States. Practicing medical tourism by going abroad is not safely. The issues exist in various fields. One is that there are no legal remedies in certain countries in case of problem with the treatment, which exists in the United States. However, some companies working in the field of providing these types of services already works with insurances in order to give a legal protection to their customers and some foreign countries are working on this side too. The travel for the patients is also an issue as the flight itself can be risky for the health of the patient. Despite these risks, the advantages of the medical tourism are still attractive. It permits to unhealthy people to be able to afford medical treatments and surgery while it would be impossible in their own country. Moreover, the service in foreign clinics tends to have a better quality as the nursing cares are better and there are more nurses per patient. It is also an advantage for insurance companies as the cost for the treatment that are on their charge are lower in foreign countries. 3
The case of India is also an interesting point for medical tourism. It has become the most attractive destination for medical tourists who look for more affordable treatment costs than in their home country. India does not only attract patients from developed country such as European countries or the United States, it s also seen as the best destination for emerging countries. Indeed, wealthy people from the elite of countries such as Bangladesh and the Gulf come to India in order to receive medical treatments at a much lower cost. India has based its offer on the high quality of its facilities, doctors and nurses who speaks English fluently and are very competent. The difference of price between India and European countries or United States is enormous. As an example, it costs $70000 for an open- heart surgery in Britain whereas in India the price is between $3000 and $10000. In seen of this massive difference, it is easy to understand why India is such an attractive destination for medical tourism. The other advantage of India is that the government encourage the medical tourism by making the service to foreign patients who pay in foreign exchange eligible for all fiscal incentives. Synthesis of the conclusions and recommendation of the three studies Medical tourism is estimated to increase in the near future as the costs in several developed countries are very high and difficult to afford for people with low income. It is even almost impossible to have medical treatment for people in some countries due to the fact that they do not have health insurance to take in charge heavy treatments and surgeries. Some countries, specially the developing ones as their prices are lower than in developed countries and that they try to have the same standards than the developed countries in order to attract foreign people. The ethical issue is that poor people of these countries do not have access to medical treatments and this industry remains therefore for elites. Assessment of the relevance for Swiss tourism Medical tourism is a field of tourism which is growing fast and there is no reason that Swiss people would not use it. However, there are some characteristics of Switzerland that make medical tourism less attractive for its inhabitants than for other countries. First of all the health system in Switzerland is good and has a high quality. The fact that 4
health insurance is compulsory for every people reduce the need of going abroad to have medical treatments at lower costs because a large part of the costs for surgery or treatments are in charge of the health insurance. Moreover, Swiss people tend to be conservative and would be suspicious regarding the quality of the service offered in other countries. However, even with this efficient health system, there are people in Switzerland who struggle to have the money to get treatments and those one could be willing to use medical tourism. Moreover, for the health insurance, in order to reduce the costs, they would be attracted by this new trend and it would be a good opportunity. Concerning an potential offer from Switzerland for medical tourism it would be difficult because despite the high quality of treatments and medical services in Switzerland the costs are very high and therefore would not attract people with low income. However, there might be a good opportunity for the wealthy elites. Bibliography Abhiyan, J. S. (2008). Medical tourism in India: winners and losers. Indian Journal of Medical Ethics, 1. Connell, J. (2005, November). Medical tourism: Sea, sun, sand and... surgery. Science Direct. York, D. (2008). Medical Tourism: The Trend Toward Outsourcing Medical Procedures to Foreign Countries. Journal of continuing education in the health professions. 5