Medical Tourism in Bangalore: Scope and Challenges - ijcsmr

International Journal of Computer Science and Management Research Vol 2 Issue 3 March 2013ISSN 2278-733Xthey were places with supposedly health-giving mineralwaters, treating diseases from gout to liver disorders andbronchitis. In the 21st century, relatively low-cost jet travelhas taken the industry beyond the wealthy and desperate.Later, mostly wealthy people began traveling to touristdestinations like the Swiss lakes, the Alps and specialtuberculosis sanatoriums, where professional and oftenspecialized medical care was offered. In this century,however, medical tourism expanded to a much larger scale.Thailand, followed by India, Puerto-Rico, Argentina, Cubaand others quickly became the most popular destinations formedical tourists. Complicated surgeries and dental works,kidney dialysis, organ transplantation and sex changes, toppedthe list of the most popular procedures. People from manyadvanced countries, including the United Sates and Europe,see a benefit in traveling to developing third world countries,like India, Thailand, Philippines, South Africa, andetc. whilecombining medical treatments with inexpensive vacation. Thistrend is now known as medical tourism.The three major medical tourism hubs in the world areSingapore, India and Thailand. Indian tourism industry isexperiencing a strong period of growth, driven by theburgeoning Indian middle class, growth in high spendingforeign tourists, and coordinated government campaigns topromote ‘Incredible India’.Medical tourism is perceived as one of the finest growingsegments in marketing ‘Destination India’ today. India is onthreshold of a healthcare revolution and emerging as thedestination for medical tourist. Healthcare industry accountedfor 5.1 per cent of the country’s GDP in 2006.• Private healthcare to form a large share of the healthcarespend, and would increase to US$ 33.6 billion in 2010 fromUS$ 14.8 billion in 2002.• Expected to generate employment opportunities for ninemillion people by 2012.• India offers easy access to visa facilities for overseaspatients along with best emerging medical infrastructure inlarge and tertiary towns. This shall generate earnings of aboutUS$ 19.5 billion in foreign exchange by 2012.• The market is estimated to touch US$ 77 billion by 2013 at aCAGR of 15 %.• Share of private expenditure as a percentage of totalexpenditure on healthcare has grown from 60 per cent tonearly 80 per cent over the last decade.• With an annual growth rate of 30 per cent, India is alreadyinching closer to Singapore andThailand, which are established medical care hubs that attractmillions of medical tourists a year.• India excels in providing quality and cheap health careservices to overseas tourists. The field has such lucrativepotential that it can become a $2.3 billion business by 2012,states a study by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). In2004, some 150,000 foreigners visited India for treatment, andthe numbers have been rising by 15 per cent each year.II. BANGALORE AS MEDICAL TOURISMDESTINATIONMedical tourism is gaining popularity in India & is recognizedas a hot medical hub or global health destination at presentbecause foreign tourists travel India in search of low-cost &world-class medical treatment. India is also capitalizing on itlow-cost and world class medical expertise to appeal these‘medical tourists.’ India is promoting the "high-tech healing"of its private healthcare sector as a tourist attraction. In short,Medical Tourism in India = World Class Treatment +Holiday + Big Savings.India has been the most attractive destination for the visitorsaround the globe. India is a perfect destination for medicaltourism that combines health treatment with visits to some ofthe most alluring and awe-inspiring places of the world. Thisis not only due to the heritage attraction of the country but themedical tourism India which has depicted a steady southwardmovement, of late. People rush India for 5 Reasons– price,service, quality, availability (cutting edge treatments) &tourism. India is in the process of becoming the "GlobalHealth Destination" owing to the following advantages:• Reduced costs/Economical and affordable pricing - The key‘selling point’ of Indian healthcare tourism is its “costeffectiveness.” Price advantage is a major selling point. Theslogan, thus is, "first world treatment at third world prices".The cost differential across the board is huge- only a tenth andsometimes even a sixteenth of the cost in the west. Mostestimates claim treatment costs in India start at around a tenthof the price of comparable treatment in America or Britain.The cost of medical services in India is almost 30% lower tothat in Western countries and the cheapest in South-east Asia.• Availability of latest medical technologies -The mostpopular treatments sought in India by medical tourists arealternative medicine, bone-marrow transplant, cardiac bypasssurgery, eye surgery and orthopaedic surgery. India is knownin particular for heart surgery, hip resurfacing and other areasof advanced medicine. All these medical treatments andinvestigations are done by using the latest, technologicallyadvanced diagnostic equipments. India has a provision andpractice of alternative traditional medicine like ayurveda,pranic healing, aromatherapy, music therapy, meditation andyoga. Many people from the advanced countries come to Indiafor the upgrading promised by yoga and Ayurvedic massage.A nice blend of top-class medical expertise at attractive pricesis helping a rising number of Indian corporate hospitals attractforeign patients, including from developed nations as theyhave accepted ayurveda as a medical system and haveexpressed interest in the ayurveda curriculum and research.Shama Mankikar et.al.1984www.ijcsmr.org