Medical tourism is traveling for medical management to another country for better technology, services and standards, cost saving, availability and other reasons. Each year more than 1 million patients worldwide visit hospitals and clinics in countries other than their own.  India alone received 4,50,000 patients in 2007 and they paid just 20% of what they would have paid in USA. There are several destination countries among which the  leading ones are India, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Turkey Belgium, Hungary, South Korea Brazil, Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico and USA.
             The cost of medical treatments has been always less in the developing economies but what has changed is the technologically advanced set up and highly trained doctors in such destination countries. This fact has shifted the paradigm of medical management all over the world.  Medical tourism is not only driven by cost but  also by world class hospitals with international accreditations, highly trained staff, innovations and latest advances in facilities. These are also the reasons why patients opt for medical tourism.

Healthcare in destination countries is less costly because –

• Standards of living are more modest
• Doctors and staff command lower wages
• Government-subsidized healthcare keeps private healthcare costs down
• Malpractice attorneys are, if not docile, at least considerably more restrained

Where as cost in western countries is high because –

• High cost of facilities
• Unpaid hospital bills totaling billions of dollars
• High-priced medical education
• Costly research
• Excessive malpractice litigation all add up to exorbitant prices for healthcare in the western countries
• In addition, these physicians who perform elective and specialty procedures—such as cosmetic surgeries, in vitro fertilization, and certain hip, spine, and cardiac procedures—command astronomical fees from patients willing and able to pay, leaving those of more modest means in the lurch and seeking alternatives.

Sample of charges in $ US for surgeries at different countries.

Procedure USA India Thailand Singapore Malaysia Panama Typical Medicare Payment Coronary artery bypass surgery 70,000-133,000 7,000 22,000 16,500 12,000 10,500 18,500-23,500 Bypass surgery with heart valve replacement 75,000-140,000 9,500 25,000 22,000 13,500 13,500 30,900-43,000 Hip replacement 33,000-57,000 10,200 12,700 12,000 7,500 5,500 10,085-12,500 Knee replacement 30,000-53,000 9,200 11,500 9,500 12,000 7,000 10,085-12,500 Prostate surgery (TURP procedure) 10,000-16,000 3,600 4,400 5,500 4,500 3,500 3,003-3,400 Gastric bypass 35,000-52,000 9,300 13,000 16,500 12,500 8,500 7,902-9,500 Face-lift 10,500-16,000 4,800 5,000 7,500 6,500 2,500 *

Hospitals Overseas
             Hospitals Overseas is global medical healthcare facilitator providing seamless services to patients for medical travel which is an experience worth recommending.   Hospitals Overseas, acting as representative of the patient, would add great value to the whole process of visiting a country for medical management. This includes many services which would be available through Hospitals Overseas and not by the chosen hospital directly.  Our participation gives  a personal touch to seeker and provider of services and we are present around the clock for your medical or non medical needs. We, ourselves being group of doctors, would be a valuable asset to seekers of medical help in an overseas country. 
             McKinsey & Company in its report of May 2008 (page 7) wrote – “Medical travelers we interviewed were uniformly quiet satisfied with their experience. They wouldn’t hesitate to go abroad for care should they need it again and would recommend that friend and family members do so as well. Some patients and their family members were so pleased with that they said they would seriously consider traveling abroad to get better care, even if care accessible and quickly available in their developed home countries.”