Daily Dose

Medical tourism is something that has always been of interest to me (and a few of my friends also). I can recall quite a few conversations on which we’ve had lengthy and serious discussions about which countries have the best practices and prices for various types of plastic surgery. In fact, when I was sent to Costa Rica at age 19, a big draw was their excellent reputation for plastic surgery. I thought it sensible to become acquainted with the country, just in case I came back one day…It’s purely physical vanity of course and I hope to grow out of it (still waiting), but in my opinion, vanity is one of the deadliest of the mortal sins, as it’s indulged by a large majority of the World’s population.

Except for my mother. I promise you that this is not a biased opinion, but my mother is a naturally beautiful person and is healthy for the sake of being healthy. So I was slightly surprised when she recommended that I do a piece on developing medical tourism in the Caribbean region, with a market focus on our Diaspora. I do know a few people who have chosen to have plastic surgery done here in Trinidad and, so far, I’ve heard no horror stories about their experiences. I don’t believe actively targeting the Diaspora in developed nations is something that has been done as yet and it does make complete sense. Foreign currency travels further and pumping a little of it into our economy is always a good thing. Also, individuals can recuperate at home rather than in an impersonal hotel room surrounded by strangers and, of course, what if something goes wrong…

That is not to say, individuals from around the globe do not take the risk. India, for example, has a thriving medical tourism industry as “patients can save 60%-95% of their treatment costs by undergoing treatment in India ” [RNCOS, “Booming Medical Tourism in India”]. Health and well-being are on the top of most “to-do” lists of late and what better destination to discover one’s inner self than India? According to the market research firm RNCOS, “wellness tourism, comprising of spa, yoga and Ayurveda, has a very bright future in India as foreigners are increasingly flocking to India to seek physical and mental healing and in 2007, around 272,000 medical tourists visited India for medical tourism and together, they brought US$ 656 Million in revenues”. The largest problem facing this destination is their inefficient malpractice laws.

I’m sorry to say, I cannot vouch for the Caribbean’s legal systems if a doctor was to perform an ineffective operation, as cases tend to stay in the Courts for ridiculous periods of time. However, many insurance companies have begun to cover trips to India in their health policies because of the competitive prices offered – it’s often much cheaper than the US, UK and the Middle East. If the Caribbean were to further explore this type of tourism, maybe the insurance companies would extend their “safety nets” to this part of the world. Additionally, the Indian government certainly appreciates the benefits of this type of tourism as they have begun “issuing a Medical Visa for tourists who come to India for medical treatment. This visa is valid for a year or the period of treatment, whichever is less, and can be extended by another year. The medical visa enables a tourist to travel to India up to three times in one year. Two family members or attendants can also accompany a patient on a medical visa”. With such provisions being made for this specialized segment of tourism no wonder the Indian medical tourism market is expected to generate over US$ 2.5 Billion in revenues by 2012.