| Medical tourism is the provision of competitively | | | | Tourism CompetitionAs more and more patients |
| priced private medical care in collaboration with | | | | from nations with high Medicare costs look for |
| the tourism industry.Patients can travel to India | | | | medical tourism options, India has competition |
| for surgery and other forms of healthcare and | | | | namely from Thailand, Singapore and other Asian |
| pay less than patients who stay in their own | | | | countries. They have good hospitals, attractive |
| country.Other highly attractive benefits include: | | | | climates and are established tourist destinations. |
| The opportunity for patients to avoid long waiting | | | | While these countries with their advanced medical |
| lists and with the savings they make, get a | | | | facilities and medical tourism options have been |
| holiday included in the package.Medical tourists are | | | | drawing overseas healthcare traffic, India is and |
| an expanding group and one of the leaders in the | | | | looks set to, expand at a faster rate.India's World |
| field is India.The Growth of Medical Tourism in | | | | Class Healthcare FacilitiesIndian corporate hospitals |
| IndiaIndia's healthcare industry is already growing | | | | are comparable to hospitals anywhere in the |
| at 30 per cent annually. The area has shown such | | | | world. In fact, India offers world-class medical |
| growth potential that Indian finance minister | | | | facilities that are comparable with the US or |
| Jaswant Singh, called recently for India to become | | | | UK.There is already a high concentration of |
| a "global health destination." His enthusiasm for | | | | expatriate Indian medical staff working in the US |
| making medical tourism in India a major foreign | | | | and UK, as well as many other countries. This |
| exchange revenue earner has broad based | | | | gives patients confidence in the healthcare offered |
| support among local government and industry.The | | | | by India generally as they are already used to the |
| ministry of tourism has shown interest, but so to | | | | expertise and professionalism of Indian medical |
| have the various state tourism boards and the | | | | staff. This is a major, but often overlooked factor |
| private sector consisting of travel agents, tour | | | | in the growth of medical tourism in India.Medical |
| operators and hotel companies. All are looking at | | | | Tourism CostsMedical tourism in India's main |
| healthcare and medical tourism in India as an area | | | | appeal is low-cost treatment. Most estimates claim |
| with tremendous growth potential.A newspaper | | | | treatment costs in India start at around a tenth |
| article recently in "India Abroad," showed the | | | | of the price of comparable treatment in the US |
| potential for medical tourism, when it outlined a | | | | or UK and cover a wide spectrum of areas from, |
| deal, where India could earn more than $1 billion | | | | cosmetic surgery and major operations, to |
| annually and creates 40 million new jobs by | | | | preventative screening.Medical Tourism in India and |
| sub-contracting work from the British National | | | | the Holiday of a LifetimeOf course, you can get |
| Health Service. The deal would have broad appeal. | | | | hugely reduced healthcare in India, but medical |
| It would slash waiting times dramatically in the UK | | | | tourists can also enjoy a holiday in a country that |
| and create huge savings in time and money for | | | | has a huge diversity of holiday options, from the |
| patients.The potential for medical tourism in India | | | | beaches of Goa, to the mighty Himalayas, diverse |
| from the US and UK looks set for major growth, | | | | wildlife and thousands of years of culture. |
| as India becomes a preferred destination for | | | | In conclusion, medical tourism in India is here to |
| medical tourists from these countries.Medical | | | | stay and looks set for spectacular growth. |