Medical Tourism in Africa
Tourists are packing their bags and checking their reservations, but the maps they’re looking at have something that wasn’t there some years ago--hospitals and health care centers. Yes, medical tourism is the hot new thing, and they mean to take every advantage of it. With the price tag for health care soaring and with waiting lists for medical procedures growing ever longer in the United States, people now find it more convenient to avail of medical packages and travel abroad for medical treatment. Their first consideration, of course, is cost. With surgery in Asian or African countries far cheaper than procedures back home are, medical tourism destinations have become very appealing. After all, who wouldn’t mind traveling a little further if it would save thousands of dollars? What may seem practically impossible back home now suddenly appears within reach. Heart surgery, dentistry, cosmetic surgery-- it’s as though you have been given control of your life once more.
Medical Tourism and the Skeptics
“But”, say the critics, “what are the chances you take? Are they worth the risk? Surely you wouldn’t receive the same kind of care you would back home! And haven’t you heard of botched cases and malpractices?” Yes, they are worth considering, but they’re everywhere, aren’t they? And the ultramodern health-care centers catering to medical tourism can compete with the best, worldwide. Besides their excellent facilities, they also boast of physicians and surgeons who received their degrees in Europe or the US.
Although Asian countries have cornered most of the medical tourism market today, South Africa is fast catching up. Its hospitals and clinics, staffed by the country’s best surgeons, are far cheaper than their American and European counterparts. Most of the medical tourists check in for a variety of medical procedures, but plastic surgery treatments are the main draw. South Africa has many of the world’s best plastic surgeons, and their skills, along with the hospitals’ high tech facilities and medical tourism packages, ensure a constant influx of medical tourists to its shores.
The Allure of Medical Tourism Packages
Besides affordability and quality, medical packages offer other incentives such as complementary therapy sessions, personal assistants, treatments at spas and beauty salons, packaged deals in top class hotels, and even safaris. In short, medical packages allow you to receive quality care, try new experiences, and explore the world in ways unimaginable just a few years ago.
Source: Becca Hutchinson, “South Africa Travel Hub, Medical Tourism in South Africa," UDaily