Medical tourism refers to the practice of touring to different states to obtain better health

care facilities. Healthcare service providers may also travel to other countries to give world-class

healthcare service. The services include simple procedures and complex and specialized

surgeries such as cardiac surgery, dental surgery, joint replacement (knee/hip), and cosmetic

surgeries.

In medical tourism, citizens of highly developed nations bypass services offered in their

communities and travel to less-developed areas of the world for medical care. It is essentially

different from the traditional international medical travel model, where patients generally travel

from less-developed countries to big medical centers in highly-developed nations for medical

treatment unavailable in their communities.

Due to the US’s growing healthcare costs and the upsurge of health tourism destinations

that extend the quality and affordable healthcare perked up by a beautiful travel experience, most

Americans hurry to book schedules with healthcare providers from far away.

‍ This phenomenon gave birth to a strong global medical tourism market worth over $37

billion in 2019. Patients book flight trips to other states for various medical procedures, including

dental surgery, cosmetic surgery, and even orthopedic procedures, at reasonable prices.

According to the Medical Tourism Index, which assesses countries’ attractiveness for medical

tourism, a country’s public image, economy, healthcare costs, and quality of medical care are the

main factors that steer medical tourism growth in a destination.

India is one of the leading players in the medical tourism industry in Asia. It ranks first in

the medical tourism dimension of the MTI. It is also one of the most visited countries for health

care, with an expanded visa policy that alleviates the hassle in travel for medical tourists. Their
medical visa policy allows patients to stay up to 60 days and offers a medical attendant visa for

blood relatives who wish to accompany the patient. India’s government introduced a medical

tourism portal that provides patients access to their network of healthcare facilities and a list of

medical services available in the country. It allows patients to schedule appointments with

healthcare providers and even book for other services, including accommodation and recreational

activities, before their arrival.

Apollo is a group of hospitals in India with over 45 domestic and overseas hospitals,

neighborhood diagnostic clinics, a chain of Apollo Pharmacies, medical BPO and health

insurance services, and clinical research divisions working on the cutting edge of medical

science. Apollo had become an integrated healthcare organization with owned and managed

hospitals, diagnostic clinics, dispensing pharmacies, and consultancy services. Moreover, the

group’s service offerings include healthcare at the patient’s doorstep, clinical & diagnostic

services, medical business process outsourcing, third-party administration services, and health

insurance. Apollo also makes available the services to support healthcare, telemedicine services,

education and training programs & research services, and a host of not-for-profit projects to

enhance performance and service to customers.

Singapore comes second-place in the Medical Tourism Index, reaching the top spot for its

healthcare facilities and service quality. Over 500,000 foreign tourists visited Singapore for its

affordable and quality healthcare services as of 2019. The country established International

Patient Service Centers (IPSCs) that act as medical travel agencies to mediate between

international patients and Singaporean healthcare providers.

Gleneagles Hospital is one of Singapore’s best hospitals, offering excellent medical services with

state-of-the-art facilities and well-trained specialists.

In China, however, access to quality healthcare is difficult for over 1.3 billion citizens, mainly

those living in the countryside. Despite the expanded insurance coverage in the past five years,

gaps between rural and urban clinics, congested hospitals, and patient complaints about high

costs, poor services, and inadequate facilities continue to rise. Additionally, in general, there is a

prevalent lack of trust in doctors and the healthcare system. A 2013 survey carried out by China

Youth Daily reported 67% of the public did not trust doctors’ professional diagnosis and

treatment. Because of all these, it should come as no surprise that China’s outbound medical

tourism market is proliferating.

According to statistics from the Shanghai Medical Tourism Products and Promotion Platform,

each year, approximately 60,000 Chinese travel abroad in search of medical services ranging

from anti-aging therapy, cancer screening and treatment, giving birth, and chronic disease

treatment.

Chinese are traveling for a wide range of medical procedures and treatments; however, those

traveling to the United States and Europe are usually doing so for critical care not available at

home or because they feel the level of expertise may be lower in China. According to several

facilitator agencies, patients travel for cancer and pediatric cancer treatments, cardiovascular

procedures, stem cell treatments, and comprehensive health check-ups. Cosmetic surgery is also

popular, but most Chinese patients prefer destinations, such as South Korea and Singapore,

closer to home and less expensive than the United States and Europe.
On the other hand, the United States plays an integral part in global medical tourism and prides

itself on having the best medical services. However, it is likewise the most expensive health care

provider in the world. Private sector businesses own most of their health care facilities. In 2018,

the United States spent about $3.6 trillion on healthcare, which averages about $11,000 per

person. Relative to the economy’s size, healthcare costs have increased over the past few

decades, from 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 1960 to 18 percent in 2018.

Notwithstanding, the United States has a shot-age of radiologists. Then again, the fastest

growing medical tourism destination is in Mumbai, India. It has a few specialty hospitals,

Research and Diagnostic center, and weight reduction medical procedures. Mumbai is well

known for its restorative medical procedure and Ayurveda therapies. For patients in need of

cardiac surgeries, India is growing in medical tourism popularity. A world leader in both spinal

medical procedures and cancer screenings, South Korea, is perhaps one of the most innovatively

progressed medical countries globally. Indeed, numerous South Korean hospitals consider

electronic health records and completely digitized equipment standards. Due to its recent

development, the expense of clinical tasks is on the rise.

Nevertheless, considering treatments range from spinal treatments to cosmetic

procedures, South Korea gives patients many specialty options. On the other hand, Chinese

medical tourists often go to foreign nations because their medical care services are helpless and

long behind foreign medical care levels. This globalization on medical services has brought

about 8 million patients worldwide seeking therapy in a foreign each year.