Medical Tourism: India is the Preferred Destination for Many

For affordable health care as well as a luxury travel vacation, look no further than India.  This combination of traveling and medical care is known as medical tourism, and India is catching on especially fast in Europe and America.  Patients who need surgery or medical treatment and find it too steeply-priced in their own countries are now opting for medical tourism in Asian countries like India, Singapore, and Malaysia.

Affordable Health Care

World Travel Mart, London is a global tourism event conducted every year.  This year, the spotlight was on India as the most attractive destination for medical tourism with its offers of luxury travel vacation.  India offers well-equipped hospitals and highly –qualified, experienced medical practitioners at reasonable prices.  Renuka Chowdhury, Minister for Tourism, inaugurated the India pavilion and said, "Not only is India known for its hospitality, but also for its hospitals, which are among the best. Indians know how to do the best."

Luxury Travel Vacation Plus Health

Many Indian hospitals provide luxury services along with affordable health care for foreign patients.  They include, besides other things, a chauffeured pick-up service from the airport to the hospital and very comfortable rooms equipped with computers and Internet service.  The hospitals link up with big tour operators that provide customized tours to places of interest for the patient.  They also partner with five-star hotels for post-operative care and accommodations.

Key Medical Tourism Facilities in India

Some of the major hospitals that offer affordable health care as well as luxury travel vacation options in India are Wockhardt Hospitals Ltd, the Apollo Hospitals chain, Escorts Heart Institute & Research Centre, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, and Fortis Healthcare.  But as revenues continue to climb, expect the government and local businesses to invest more heavily in additional facilities that can afford world-class treatments at affordable prices.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service, “Indian Hospitals among the Best World Over,” HindustanTimes, November 28^th, 2005