Is the UAE the New Thailand?

UAE Could Be A Medical Tourism Hotspot

On the face of it, the UAE, and Dubai in particular, should be one of the biggest players in the medical tourism sector , if not the best.  After all, the country has the best standard of living of all the medical tourism countries on the larger Asian continent, with the arguable exception of Singapore, and it has invested millions of its petrol dollars in developing its travel and health vacation market. 

Unlike in many other medical tourism centers in Asia, it's not just the health centers here that are spick and span; but it's also everything else in this country too.  This makes any fears concerning the dangers of medical tourism (sanitation, safety and hygiene, unfounded for the average medical tourism traveler.  The UAE has well developed infrastructure and top quality tourism facilities.  In fact, its hotel industry is projected to surpass the glitz of Vegas' resorts in the next decade.  Add to this the fact that the country is able to attract top notch medical talent from the US and UK to its heath care facilities, and you have the makings of a medical tourism giant that should be able to give Thailand a run for its money.  However, progress in capturing its slice of the billion dollar health vacation market has been slow for this medical tourism wannabe.

High Cost in UAE is a Possible Factor

The biggest factor going against Dubai's medical tourism facilities is the relatively higher cost of the procedures here.  For instance, the cost of heart bypass surgery here runs to about $40,000.  Compare that to about $11,000 in Thailand and $10,000 in India, both well established health care centers farther to the east.  It's not just the cost of heart bypass surgery that is above average for medical tourism destinations.  A rundown of the price tags for most sophisticated procedures shows that the country's runaway real estate prices and high living costs are driving up the costs of vacationing as well.  This makes the UAE a less cost effective option for an uninsured person considering expensive cardiac surgery.

Plus, there's the credibility factor.  Dubai's Arab nationals, long used to visiting the US and UK for their surgeries, have been slow to warm up to the idea of giving their own facilities a chance.  They still prefer to visit Thailand where a medical tourism vacation can be combined with some of the best nightlife in Asia.  This hesitation of the local population in approaching its own hospitals for treatment poses a danger to the development of the medical tourism industry here. 

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