medical tourism in australia

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Going overseas for a medical procedure (medical tourism).

This page is for Australians planning to travel overseas for a medical procedure. 

Explore this page to learn about: 

• what is medical tourism?  
• what to think about before travelling for a medical procedure  
• the cost of medical treatment overseas
• insurance and medical tourism
• consular services and medical tourism

What is medical tourism? 

Medical tourism is when you go overseas for medical treatment. 

Many Australians travel overseas for health care to save money. Some go for treatments that are unavailable in Australia. 

The most common procedures Australians go overseas for are: 

• cosmetic surgery 
• heart surgery 
• fertility treatments 
• surrogacy  
• gender affirming surgery  
• stem-cell therapy 
• cancer treatments. 

What to think about before travelling for a medical procedure 

Before you go, research the  destination , doctor, hospital and procedure. This helps you reduce the risk of things going wrong. 

Talk to your doctor in Australia about your plans. Ask for their advice. Get a health check at least 6 weeks before you go. Make sure you've got appropriate  vaccinations . 

Choosing a destination 

Research the health system of your destination. The quality of care may not be what you're used to in Australia. 

• Read  your destination's travel advisory . See the 'Health' section for advice about local healthcare. 
• Minimum healthcare standards in some countries can be low. Standards can differ between regions, hospitals, and medical professionals within a country. 
• Learn about your legal rights in your destination. Find out if you can take legal action against the hospital and surgeon if things go wrong. 

Choosing a hospital 

Many hospitals overseas are a similar standard to hospitals in Australia. But quality and standards in some countries can be poor. Some may have low training standards for doctors and nurses. Others may have high rates of infection and complications. 

• Find out if the hospital is accredited by the local authorities. Don't go to an unofficial medical facility. 
• See if there are reports of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the hospital. These infections may not be treatable. 
• Compare the complication risks they give you to those mentioned in Australia. Be wary if a hospital overseas suggests much lower risks. 

Choosing a doctor 

Check if the surgeon who will do your procedure is qualified and accredited. Most countries have this information on an official website. 

• Find out the reputation of the doctor and the experiences of past patients. 
• In some countries, doctors and hospitals don't have to get professional insurance. Make sure your surgeon and hospital have indemnity and malpractice insurance. 

Preparing for if things don't go to plan 

There are always risks with medical procedures. You could suffer from complications, or  you could die . Even if you're young, fit and healthy. 

• Take someone with you. You'll need their support if things go wrong. They may need to make decisions for you. 
• Make sure your will is up to date. 

If your procedure goes wrong, you may end up with a new or worse problem. It could cost more to fix it. Make sure your travel insurance covers complications and medical evacuation. 

The cost of medical treatment overseas 

In some countries, elective procedures can cost much less than in Australia. But make sure you consider all possible costs. 

• If you have a complication during or after the procedure, you may have to pay more to fix it. Make sure your estimate also covers this. 
• Your travel insurance may not cover issues caused by your procedure. Check your policy. 

You're responsible for the cost of your treatment overseas. You, your family or your travel insurer will have to pay if you need further care or a medical evacuation. 

• Medicare doesn't cover you when you're overseas. 
• Reciprocal health care agreements  only cover some situations in some countries. 
• You're not likely to get subsidised care through your destination's public health system. 

The Australian government can't pay your bills or loan you money. 

Medical tourism and insurance 

Basic travel insurance policies rarely cover medical tourism. Get a specialised policy that covers the costs of your specific procedure. Some offer this as a paid extra on their policies. 

Ask your insurer about: 

• post-operative care 
• complications 
• medical evacuation. 

Be open about your plans. You may void your policy if you don't tell them everything. 

Know what you're covered for and what's excluded. Always read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). 

Learn more about  medical tourism and insurance  from the Better Health Channel. Also, read our  general advice about travel insurance . 

Australian private health insurance for medical tourism 

Some private health insurers in Australia have arrangements with hospitals overseas. They may give you the option to have a medical procedure overseas. Some may cover your travel expenses and medical fees. They may help organise your trip. 

Tell them about your plans. Ask your insurer if they: 

• will cover your procedure and travel costs 
• have a list of hospitals and surgeons overseas that they endorse 
• offer a travel insurance policy that covers you if things go wrong with your procedure. 

Even if your health insurer won't cover you, always tell them about your plans. If you don't, you may void your insurance policy if you suffer a complication. 

Consular services and medical tourism 

Understand when and how we can support Australians overseas. Read the  Consular Services Charter . 

What we can do 

• We can  contact your family in Australia with your permission. 
• We can  give you a list of local hospitals and doctors who speak English. 
• We can  give you a list of local lawyers who speak English. 

What we can't do 

• We can't  pay your medical expenses, evacuation, or legal costs. 
• We can't  get you out of trouble or jail if you can't pay your bill. 
• We can't  represent you in legal cases or intervene in local legal processes. 
• We can't  recommend hospitals or surgeons for your procedure. 
• Read our  advice about going overseas for an organ transplant . 
• Read the travel advice for your destination . Understand what each  advice level  means. 
• Read general advice about  vaccinations and preventative health . 
• Learn more about choosing the right  travel insurance . 
• Understand  what happens if you die  overseas. 
• Learn how to get medical help overseas . 
• Read the suite of  travel health information  (Department of Health and Aged Care). 
• Read about  medical tourism  (United States Government). 

Related content

Many countries don't have the same access, services or support for people with disabilities as Australia. Learn more about travelling with a disability.

When you go overseas, you may be exposed to a range of infectious diseases. Before you go, learn about the health risks in your destination and see your doctor.

Read our general advice for Australians planning to travel overseas with medications or medical equipment.

• +61 426 996 345
• [email protected]

World-class Healthcare in Australia

Our Health Mission

Medical Tourism Australia (based in Brisbane) helps international patients receive excellent medical treatment for a range of illnesses, including but not limited to cancer of all types and cardiac conditions, particularly those conditions requiring surgical intervention and orthopaedic conditions. 

We pride ourselves on co-ordinating and delivering clinical services as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible. We can organise all arrangements, including visas, transfers, accommodation and interpreters, if required.

Our experienced and carefully-chosen medical professionals put your healing needs first.  They are proud to provide a high-quality level of patient care, medical experience, and commitment to health and wellness to all their patients.

Medical Tourism Australia services include:

•  Medical treatment requiring planned transfer to Australia.
• Co-ordination and scheduling of medical, diagnostic and other appointments.
• Transfer from airport, where necessary, including ambulance transport.
• Interpreter services as required.
• Assistance with Australian entry visa.
• Accommodation arrangements for patients and accompanying support people.
• We provide an estimate of costs prior to admission to medical services.

Australia Leads the World in Healthcare

WORLD-CLASS SERVICES AND WORLD-CLASS SPECIALISTS

Australia is the best place in the world for superb medical treatment. 

Australia is rated number one in the world for medical outcomes  *

Australia has 32,000 medical specialists and 630 private hospitals. You will have access to the very best of both for medical treatment without delay

Medical Tourism Australia will get you here.

Medical Tourism Australia is a highly innovative Australian company whose sole focus is on bringing international patients to Australia for treatment. We take care of all the arrangements for international patients, giving you access to the world’s very best medical treatment.

AUSTRALIA’S KEY AREAS OF MEDICAL EXPERTISE Australia is excellent in all areas of medicine including but not limited to:

• CANCER - ALL TYPES
• NEUROSURGERY
• GYNAECOLOGY
• ORTHOPAEDICS
• PAEDIATRICS
• RESPIRATORY
• CARDIOVASCULAR
• ENT (EAR/NOSE/THROAT)
• GENERAL SURGERY
• GENITOURINARY

The Medical Tourism Australia model is open, clear and simple:

• Contact us through our Contact Us form below. 
• Our medical directors will evaluate your medical diagnosis and refer you to the most suitable specialist for your illness.
• The hospital or specialist advises of the costs involved, and once given the go-ahead, treats you and recommends any follow-up treatments.
• We will arrange transport from the airport to hotel, specialists and hospital.
• We will provide an interpreter, if needed.
• We will support and facilitate post-operative care arrangements, including access to allied health treatments such as      physiotherapy and occupational therapy.
• Your specialist medical director approves your release.

You return home, recovered, relaxed, and ready to face life in good health.

* Commonwealth Research Fund New York

Ensuring Quality of Care

WORLD-CLASS HOSPITALS & WORLD-CLASS SPECIALISTS

Why is Australia’s quality of care so good?

• Australia ensures quality of care through using the strategies enshrined in its National Healthcare Agreement of the Council of Australian Governments. The agreement sets out thesele common objective of Australian governments in providing a sustainable healthcare system with improved outcomes for all, and provides the performance benchmarks on which progress is assessed.
• The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) is the body responsible for safety and quality improvement in healthcare. It has developed service standards which must be met by hospitals and day surgery centres to ensure accreditation.
• The Australian Bureau of Statistics also undertakes an annual patient-experience survey.
• The Australian Council on Healthcare Standards is a non-government agency that accredits hospitals and other healthcare institutions. States licence and register private hospitals and the health workforce, legislate on the operation of public hospitals and work collaboratively through the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme to maintain patient protections. States must also ensure that the workforce maintains minimum hours and standards of continuing education to maintain accreditation.
• The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has responsibility for accrediting GPs. The ACSQH has developed a national framework to support consistent registries.

Applying for treatment through us

You will need to provide medical information to Medical Tourism Australia about your condition. Your doctor will be able to assist you with a summary of your condition including any radiology (X-ray, MRI, CT scan, and ultrasound) or pathology reports necessary.

Enjoy our stunning cities

You’ll get more than world-class hospitals when you visit Australia. You’ll also get to enjoy the beautiful cities they are situated in. Whether it’s Melbourne for the cultural life, Sydney for the beach vibe, Brisbane for the sub-tropical climate or Adelaide for its historical buildings, every city in Australia is unique and beautiful. 

Download our Brochure

Please complete this contact form in full

Medical Tourism Australia (ABN 69 666 647 561)

Phone number:  +61 426 996 345

Office Hrs:  9am – 5pm Monday to Friday

Medical Tourism Australia

• 1117/477 Boundary Street, Spring Hill Queensland 4000, Australia

• Dental crowns
• Dental Implants
• Dental Fillings (Dental Inlay)
• Veneers (Porcelain Veneers)
• Dentures( False teeth) – Prostodontics
• Adams Apple Contouring
• Brachiaplasty (Arm Lift)
• Blepharoplasty
• Breast Augmentation
• Breast Reduction
• Botox(Botulinum Toxins)
• Eyebrow lift(Browplasty)
• Cheek Bone Augmentation
• Otoplasty(Ear surgery)
• Eye surgery (Laser Eye surgery)
• Face lift (Rhytidectomy)
• Liposuction (Cosmetic surgery)
• Thigh Lift (Thighplasty)
• Nose Surgery (Nose correction)
• Tummy Tuck(Abdominoplasty)
• Post operation garments
• Free Dental Assesment
• Free Cosmetic Assesment

The Facility

The Australian Medical Council sets high clinical standards that are guided rigorously, providing comprehensive, safe and high quality medical care across Australia

The Tourism

Discover Australia’s vibrant cities and their unique attractions and why ‘There’s Nothing Like Australia’.

Experience the creativity of Australia’s food and wine culture that helps us produce fresh and innovative flavours and wines that are the envy of the world.

Australia is home to a wonderful mix of cultures from all over the world. We celebrate our multicultural diversity with enthusiasm and passion.

The Accommodation

Relax and recover after surgery in complete privacy where you find rest and recreation for body and soul.

Not only will you enjoy the way you look after your procedure, but you will feel more relaxed and rested after recovering in your hotel where restaurants, parklands and wine regions are also within easy reach

Australian Medical Travel has successfully been sending Australian to Thailand since 2005; This is why we are the #1 Medical Tourism Agency in Australia.

First contact our informative staff for detailed costs and information on your procedure. Next take photographs and have a No Obligation quote and recommendations from your choice of a surgeon in Phuket, Bangkok or both.

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Is medical tourism a viable industry for Australia to specialise in?

28 Jul 2014, by Informa Insights

As it is still in its infancy, however, precise data on the sector is yet to be collated. That said, the early signs shown in the industry are certainly promising, as can be evidenced in figures from Patients Beyond Borders.

According to the medical tourism experts, the current market for this branch of healthcare is worth around US$38.5 – 5 billion. It’s an industry that is in line for further growth too, as Patients Beyond Borders predicts the global market to expand at a rate of around 15 to 25 per cent per year, with growth particularly concentrated in Asia.

There is a lot of untapped potential to be explored in medical tourism, but as of yet, Australia is still lagging on an international scale. What exactly does medical tourism entail, and will it ever be viable as an industry Down Under?

What is medical tourism?

The nascent nature of the industry means that exact definitions of medical tourism are still contested, but the general consensus is that it involves the travel of people to other countries for the purpose of undergoing medical procedures.

There are many reasons why someone would wish to go overseas to receive healthcare treatment – but the most widely reported motive, and the one fuelling the global trade, is cost effectiveness. More and more patients are becoming aware that certain medical procedures are far cheaper or better in other nations. In some cases, the treatment required is simply not available in the home country.

One maligned aspect of medical tourism is that a significant proportion of patients travel to engage in services that aren’t of a wholly healthcare nature – namely, to receive surgical procedures.

Nevertheless, it remains important to global healthcare as it gives patients more information and choice as to where they opt to receive certain treatments. And as awareness grows around the world and cross-border travel becomes more affordable, it’s an industry that’s only likely to expand.

Given its promise, how is Australia doing with regards to fostering its local medical tourism industry?

The industry in Australia

Currently, there are large numbers of Australians travelling overseas to undergo medical treatment – but the inbound flow is much, much weaker. The latest indications are that there is still a lot of work to be done before significant progress is made on this trend.

The most recent, large-scale study on the medical tourism industry in Australia was conducted in 2011 by Deloitte Access Economics, on behalf of the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism. The ‘Medical tourism in Australia: A scoping study’ confirmed what many had suspected – that the sector here is “small and scattered”. According to the report, those who came to Australia for medical reasons in 2010 comprised just 0.23 per cent of total visitors to Australia that year.

The study also concluded that a lack of supply is one of the biggest factors holding back the growth of the industry in Australia. Shortages in both hospital bed capacity and skilled healthcare workers, coupled with complex visa application processes and low government support, mean that the industry has failed to progress on par with global competitors.

Steve Hambleton, president of the Australian Medical Association, added that the Australian healthcare system must focus on adequately meeting domestic needs before expanding the medical tourism sector.

“It is entirely appropriate that a first world country should be thinking about exporting expertise just like this, but we have a problem here about training the next generation of doctors for our own domestic needs, and when we have surplus capacity is when we should be looking overseas,” he was quoted as saying in a February 7 2014 article on ABC News.

As a developed nation in conveniently close proximity to Asia, perhaps the largest medical tourism market, the potential is certainly there for Australia – but it must first address the needs of its own residents before exporting its healthcare system to the wider world.

To find out more about the implications of recent changes within the medical tourism industry and the impact on the Australian market, attend Informa’s inaugural Medical Tourism Summit on the 20th and 21st November at the Rendezvous Grand Hotel in Melbourne.

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Medical, Health and Wellness Tourism Research—A Review of the Literature (1970–2020) and Research Agenda

1 Institute for Big Data Research in Tourism, School of Tourism Sciences, Beijing International Studies University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100024, China; nc.ude.usib@anilgnohz (L.Z.); moc.361@5220niloabgned (B.D.); moc.361@gnay__uyil (L.Y.)

Baolin Deng

Alastair m. morrison.

2 Greenwich Business School, Old Royal Naval College, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9SL, UK; [email protected]

J. Andres Coca-Stefaniak

Associated data.

Data are reported in the article.

Medical, health and wellness tourism and travel represent a dynamic and rapidly growing multi-disciplinary economic activity and field of knowledge. This research responds to earlier calls to integrate research on travel medicine and tourism. It critically reviews the literature published on these topics over a 50-year period (1970 to 2020) using CiteSpace software. Some 802 articles were gathered and analyzed from major databases including the Web of Science and Scopus. Markets (demand and behavior), destinations (development and promotion), and development environments (policies and impacts) emerged as the main three research themes in medical-health-wellness tourism. Medical-health-wellness tourism will integrate with other care sectors and become more embedded in policy-making related to sustainable development, especially with regards to quality of life initiatives. A future research agenda for medical-health-tourism is discussed.

1. Introduction

In 1841, Thomas Cook organized a tour of 570 people to travel from Leicester to Loughborough’s hot springs [ 1 ]. This was the first historically documented tour arranged by a travel agent. However, far earlier, people in Ancient Greece used to travel considerable distances for medical treatment [ 2 ]. Thus, the pursuit of health and medical care has been an essential reason for travel for centuries.

Today, people continue to travel in the pursuit of relaxation, for health reasons, as well as fitness and well-being [ 3 ]. As a response to this growing demand, countries, medical providers, and hospitality and tourism organizations are adapting to offer a broader set of medical, health, and wellness tourism experiences.

The concept of medical-health-wellness tourism has emerged relatively recently as a scholarly field of enquiry in tourism [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]. Although it has been pointed out that travel medicine has existed for 25 years [ 7 ], much of the research related to this has traditionally focused on medical aspects with inadequate consideration given to travel or tourism. Medical-health-wellness tourism can be classified into two primary categories according to a tourist’s choice - obligatory or elective. Obligatory travel occurs when required treatments are unavailable or illegal in the place of origin of the traveler and, as a result of this, it becomes necessary to travel elsewhere to access these services. Elective travel is usually scheduled when the time and costs are most suitable, and the treatments may even be available in the travelers’ home regions [ 8 ]. Other studies have classified these forms of travel and tourism into specific types based on the purpose of the treatment, such as dental tourism [ 9 ], stem cell tourism [ 10 ], spa tourism [ 11 ], springs tourism [ 12 ], IVF treatment [ 13 ], hip and knee replacements, ophthalmologic procedures, cosmetic surgery [ 5 ], cardiac care, and organ transplants [ 14 ].

A consensus is yet to be established on the definitions and contents of medical-health-wellness tourism, and how they interact, including their potential overlaps. Medical travel and tourism, health tourism, wellness tourism, and other similar terms (e.g., birth tourism, cosmetic surgery tourism, dental tourism) tend to be investigated separately in tourism research [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Notwithstanding the apparently disconnected nature of published research in this field, medical-health-wellness tourism has become much more popular for a variety of economic, cultural, lifestyle and leisure reasons [ 11 , 21 , 22 ]. Given their rapid development, it seems appropriate to conduct a comprehensive review of the definitions, history, typologies, driving factors, and future directions for these forms of tourism.

This study firstly reviews existing scholarly research through a meta-analysis of medical-health-wellness publications in the context of tourism ( Section 2 ). Then, the method used to analyze the data collected from ISI Web of Science is outlined in Section 3 , followed by a discussion of the research findings ( Section 4 ). Finally, in Section 5 , the conclusions, future research directions, and limitations of the study are presented.

2. Scholarly Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Medical, Health and Wellness Tourism

Previous reviews of the literature and meta-analyses have contributed to clarifying the overall understanding of medical-health-wellness tourism. Existing literature reviews tend to be very broad, spanning health-oriented tourism, medical tourism, sport and fitness tourism, adventure tourism, well-being (Yang sheng in Chinese) tourism, cosmetic surgery tourism, spa tourism, and more.

Medical tourism is an expanding global phenomenon [ 15 , 23 , 24 ]. Driven by high healthcare costs, long patient waiting lists, or a lack of access to new therapies in some countries, many medical tourists (mainly from the United States, Canada, and Western Europe) often seek access to care in Asia, Central and Southern Europe, and Latin America [ 25 , 26 , 27 ]. There are potential biosecurity and nosocomial risks associated with international medical tourism [ 28 ]. One research study collected 133 electronic copies of Australian television programs (66 items) and newspapers (65) about medical care overseas from 2005 to 2011 [ 29 ]. By analyzing these stories, the researchers discovered that Australian media coverage of medical tourism was focused geographically mainly on Asia, featuring cosmetic surgery procedures and therapies generally not available in Australia. However, people tend to engage with medical tourism for a broad range of reasons. In some cases, it is better service quality or lower treatment costs that prevail. In other cases, treatments may not be available locally, or there are long patient waiting lists for non-emergency medical care. Some 100 selected articles were reviewed and categorized into different types of medical tourism depending on the medical treatments they involved, such as dentistry, cosmetic surgery, or fertility work [ 25 ]. An analysis was done on 252 articles on medical tourism posted on the websites of the Korean Tourism Organization and the Korean International Medical Association [ 30 ]. This work enhanced the understanding of medical tourism in Korea as well as identifying the key developmental characteristics. Another research study detailed patient experiences in medical travel, including decision making, motivations, risks, and first-hand accounts [ 31 ]. A literature review was conducted on international travel for cosmetic surgery tourism [ 5 ] and it concluded that the medical travel literature suffered from a lack of focus on the non-surgery-related morbidity of these tourists.

Another set of authors defined health tourism as a branch of tourism in general in which people aim to receive specific treatments or seek an enhancement to their mental, physical, or spiritual well-being [ 32 ]. This systematic literature review assessed the value of destinations’ natural resources and related activities for health tourism. It was argued that most of the research on health tourism has focused on travel from developed to developing countries, and that there is a need to study travel between developed nations [ 33 ].

Wellness tourism is a key area of relevant research as well [ 34 ]. One research study reviewed trends in wellness tourism research and concluded that tourism marketing had so far failed to tap into the deeper meaning of wellness as a concept [ 35 ]. The emergence of health and wellness tourism was explored with their associated social, political, and economic influences [ 13 ]. A review was conducted of the development of wellness tourism using the concept of holistic wellness tourism where it was found that the positive impacts of this type of tourism on social and economic well-being were key to its rising levels of popularity [ 36 ].

All in all, although earlier literature reviews provide invaluable insights into medical-health-wellness tourism, there is a lack of studies that approach this concept in a holistic way. This research seeks to redress this balance by delivering a holistic review of the literature with the following objectives in mind: (1) investigating international journal articles across the typologies of tourism outlined above; (2) identifying influential scholars that have significantly contributed to this field; and (3) summarizing key trends in markets, industry development and promotion, as well as policy-making and impacts. In order to achieve this, a systematic review was conducted to analyze research articles in medical-health-wellness tourism published over a 50-year period from 1970 to 2020.

3.1. Data Collection

A two-step approach was adopted for the development of a database of publications for analysis with CiteSpace. The first step involved a search for relevant, high-quality refereed articles in medical-health-wellness tourism. Several academic journal databases, within tourism and hospitality but also including other disciplines too, were searched for relevant articles in medical-health-wellness tourism using a set of selected keywords. The ISI Web of Science and Scopus were chosen for this purpose as a result of their international recognition and comprehensiveness. Articles included in the list of references of selected articles were also considered valid as part of this search, in line with methodological suggestions for systematic literature searches [ 37 ]. Cited articles were also collected from prominent journals, including the Southern Medical Journal, Journal of Travel Medicine, BMC Public Health, Annals of Tourism Research, Tourism Management, Journal of Travel Research, and Journal of Vacation Marketing. Non-tourism related journals were selected as well including Amfiteatru Economic, Asia Pacific Viewpoint, Public Personal Management, and Revista de Historia Industrial. Adding these references not only delivered a higher number of relevant articles to the database, but it also increased its representativeness.

The second step involved using appropriate, valid and representative search keywords. A total of 986 articles were gathered using the following keywords: medical tourism, health tourism, wellness tourism, and spa tourism. After careful sorting of these publications, using their abstracts and keywords, the number of articles in the database was narrowed down to 802. Of these, 615 were obtained using the keywords medical tourism or wellness tourism, 157 were located by searching for health tourism, and 30 were discovered using spa tourism as the search term. Using the above keywords and restricting the search to 50 years (1970–2020), the first article was found to be published in 1974. As a result, the ensuing analysis of the literature comprises the period from 1974 to 2020.

3.2. Data Analysis

The research tool used for this study was CiteSpace, which is a bibliometric analysis software developed by Professor Chaomei Chen of Drexel University based on the Java framework [ 38 ]. This software assists researchers in the analysis of research trends in a specific field of knowledge and presents scientific knowledge structures through visualization. It has been applied to numerous research fields by scholars from many countries. The data processing for this research used the software V.5.7.R2 (64-bit) version.

The data were classified and analyzed to achieve three specific goals. The first and primary goal of this review work was to analyze the content of the chosen articles, including year of publication, authors, journal impact factors, and the institutional affiliations of scholars in this field. The data were then sorted into categories. The order of authorship was not recorded. For multiple-authored articles, each author was given the same level of credit as sole authors. Second, one of the aims of this research was to discover associations in authorships, regions, and affiliations using statistical analysis. Third, the 802 articles were classified into dominant thematic categories applying the approach proposed by Miles and Huberman [ 39 ]. Three flows of analytical activities were targeted here: data reduction, data display, and verification of data. In the data reduction activity, the word count technique was adopted. Through content analysis, each article’s title and full-text body were recorded for word counting. The most frequently appearing words were extracted to represent the main topics of the collected articles. The dominant thematic categories to be explored further based on the content analysis and word count were: (1) tourism market: tourist demand and behavior; (2) tourism destinations: development and promotion; and (3) tourism development contexts: policies and impacts.

Finally, in order to refine the set of topic sub-categories, abstracts, first paragraphs, and conclusions were read to make the most appropriate assignments. This approach contributed to the more advanced stages of development of the classification of sub-categories and, consequently, the verification of findings.

This section presents the results of the data analysis carried out in this study and provides further insights on the methodology adopted.

4.1. Overview of Articles Published

The 802 articles selected were all published in English and in international peer-reviewed academic journals. Figure 1 displays the timeline distribution of the research on medical-health-wellness tourism and shows a steady growth in publications in this field between 1974 and 2020. This growth in scholarly activity is particularly significant from 2010 onwards. In fact, 74.9% of the articles were published between 2013 and 2020.

Number of articles by publication year.

4.2. Source Journals

Initially, the first stage of this literature search involved identifying academic journals publishing research articles on medical-health-wellness tourism. It was found that 38 articles had been published on this topic in Tourism Management, and 24 articles in Social Science & Medicine. Table 1 shows the top ten tourism journals for publications in this field, with Tourism Management in first place.

Tourism journals publishing articles on medical-health-wellness tourism.

Non-tourism journals in fields such as business, economics, and health, also contributed a significant number of publications in this field, as shown in Table 2 .

Non-tourism journals publishing articles on medical-health-wellness tourism.

4.3. Author Productivity and Authorship Analysis

The second aim was to identify the most prolific scholars in medical-health-wellness tourism research. This was achieved using co-occurrence network analysis of the authors of relevant research articles ( Figure 2 ). Each node in the co-occurrence map shown in Figure 2 represents a given scholar. The larger the node, the more articles the authors published on the topic, with the connections between nodes representing cooperation between authors.

Author article productivity.

Among the 2381 authors identified, 1820 (76.4%) contributed to only one article, whereas the remaining 561 (23.6%) authored two or more articles. The three most prolific authors were Jeremy Snyder, Valorie Crooks, and Rory Johnston.

4.4. Author Regions and Affiliations

Another objective was to illustrate the relationships and networks of authors publishing research on medical-health-wellness tourism. An analysis of countries this research originated from was carried out using the CiteSpace software. Figure 3 shows that scholars publishing in this field were distributed across 61 countries. The largest group of authors originated from the USA ( n =197). The second and third largest groups corresponded to Canada ( n = 88) and the UK ( n = 84), respectively, followed by Australia ( n = 70) and South Korea ( n = 65). As shown in Figure 3 , authors from the USA and Canada have made the most significant contributions to medical-health-wellness tourism based on the number of journal articles published.

Country of origin of authors in medical-health-wellness tourism.

As shown in Figure 4 , a significant number of scholars publishing in this field ( n = 47) were affiliated to Simon Fraser University in Canada. This university was followed by Sejong University in South Korea ( n = 13), and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine ( n = 13) in the UK. The top universities in terms of author frequency were based in Canada, USA, Australia, UK, South Korea, and Hong Kong.

Institutions of authors.

4.5. Thematic Analysis of Research

The fourth research objective was to elicit the prevailing research themes using the 802 articles gathered. First, an analysis of keyword frequency was performed to identify the main research interests. High frequency keywords reflect the research ‘hotspots’ in the field. Using CiteSpace’s keyword visualization analysis function, the keyword co-occurrence knowledge map of medical-health-wellness tourism research was drawn to grasp the research ‘hotspots’ ( Figure 5 ).

Frequencies of research keywords.

Then, content analysis performed on the articles gathered for this study identified three main themes, namely: markets (tourist demand and behavior), destinations (development and promotion), and development environments (policies and impacts). An uneven distribution of research themes is highlighted in Figure 6 and Figure 7 .

Timeline of research keyword appearance.

Themes of research articles.

4.6. Markets: Demand and Behavior

Previous studies have shown that the growth of medical-health-wellness tourism in developing countries is largely linked to lower costs, shorter patient waiting lists, and better quality of care [ 40 ]. Similarly, it is suggested that the inequalities and failures in domestic health care systems often lead to people seeking treatment to travel abroad to obtain it [ 41 ]. In general terms, higher costs, long patient waiting lists, the relative affordability of international air travel, favorable exchange rates, and the availability of well-qualified doctors and medical staff in developing countries, all contribute to this situation [ 42 ].

As the demand for these forms of tourism has risen over time, processes and factors influencing decision-making have attracted growing levels of scholarly enquiry. For example, a political responsibility model was used to develop a decision-making process for individual medical tourists [ 43 ]. A sequential decision-making process has been proposed, including considerations of the required treatments, location of treatment, and quality and safety issues attendant to seeking care [ 44 ]. Accordingly, it has been found that health information and the current regulatory environment tend to affect the availability of medical care.

Multiple factors may simultaneously influence decisions related to the destination for care, including culture [ 45 ], social norms [ 46 ], religious factors [ 47 ], and the institutional environment [ 48 ]. It is suggested that socioeconomic conditions shape medical travelers’ decision-making and spending behavior relative to treatment, accommodation, and transport choices as well as the length of stay [ 49 ]. Perceived value is a key predictor of tourist intentions. More specifically, perceived medical quality, service quality, and enjoyment significantly influence the intention to travel abroad for medical-health-wellness purposes [ 50 ]. Further, perceived quality, satisfaction, and trust in the staff and clinics have significant associations affecting intentions to revisit clinics and the destination country [ 51 ]. An empirical study was conducted and found that physical convenience in willingness to stay and time and effort savings in perceived price were key factors affecting the decision-making related to medical hotels [ 52 ]. In addition, the level of perceived advantages, price perceptions, and willingness to stay were found to differ significantly between first-time patients and those with two or more previous visits. In addition, it was found that community communication was a major factor influencing decision-making. For instance, it is argued that virtual community membership has a strong influence on tourist behaviors and the way information is transmitted [ 53 ].

Compared to other tourists, the mental activity and behavior of medical-health-wellness travelers are quite different. Medical tourists are less likely to question their need for surgery and tend to be much readier to accept it [ 54 ]. The emotion and anxiety conditions of medical tourists differ from others’ experiences of travel and tourism, as well as their giving and receiving of transnational health care [ 55 ]. It has been found that language barriers and parenting responsibilities can be significant challenges, while hospital staff and their own families are often major sources of support for medical tourists [ 56 ]. Furthermore, there are significant differences among visitors from different countries in terms of choices, discomfort, preferred product items, and attitudes towards medical tourism [ 57 , 58 ].

4.7. Destinations: Development and Promotion

In response to the demands of medical-health-wellness tourism, destination development and promotion are attracting growing levels of scholarly interest. Scholars from different countries have discussed the market status of Turkey [ 12 , 59 ], the Caribbean [ 60 ] and Barbados [ 61 ], India [ 62 , 63 ], Canada [ 64 ], and Albania [ 65 ]. Table 3 outlines the most frequently researched country destinations in this respect.

Medical-health-wellness destination frequency in keywords.

The advantages and disadvantages of Turkey were examined and indicated needs for improvements [ 59 ]. In another research study, three years (2005, 2007, and 2011) of actual and projected operational cost data were evaluated for three countries: USA, India, and Thailand [ 66 ]. This study discussed some of the inefficiencies in the U.S. healthcare system, drew attention to informing uninsured or underinsured medical tourists of the benefits and risks, and determined the managerial and cost implications of various surgical procedures in the global healthcare system.

As regards medical-health-wellness tourism destination development, scholars have explored research from various perspectives. Conceptual frameworks have been developed to include tourism destinations and services in the context of medical and health tourism [ 59 , 67 ]. Advice has been provided from the perspective of public and private hospital doctors [ 68 ]. The principles of designing hospital hotels have been proposed, including proper planning, low prices of tourism services, medical education, creating websites on medical tourism, and health tourism policy councils [ 69 ]. Above all, scholars have posited that meeting or exceeding tourist expectations and requirements should remain the top priorities as regards the effective development of medical tourism destinations [ 69 , 70 ].

Once a medical-health-wellness tourism destination is developed successfully, marketing and promotion are essential to attract tourists. As part of this process, informing potential patients about procedural options, treatment facilities, tourism opportunities, and travel arrangements are the keys to success [ 71 ]. Most tourists rely on the Internet to gather information about destinations, often using mobile devices or personal computers [ 72 ], with websites and social media playing a key role in this respect, and specifically with regards to information about destinations’ medical facilities, staff expertise, services, treatments, equipment, and successful cases [ 73 ]. For example, apps for medical travel are available to attract tourists and promote medical tourism in Taiwan [ 74 ].

Numerous businesses promote medical-health-wellness travel, including medical travel companies, health insurance companies, travel agencies, medical clinics, and hospitals [ 75 ]. Among them, medical travel facilitators play a significant role as engagement moderators between prospective patients in one country and medical facilities elsewhere around the world [ 76 ]. The services offered on medical tourism facilitator websites vary considerably from one country to another [ 77 ]. Although medical travel facilitators operate on a variety of different scales and market their services differently, they all emphasize the consumer experience through advertising quality assurance and logistical support [ 78 ].

Scholarly research has also considered the factors that need to be taken into consideration in medical-health-wellness tourism promotion. This research has suggested that destinations should identify the specifics in their health tourism resources, attractions, and products, seek collaboration with others, and build a common regional brand [ 79 ]. Regional differences should be considered in the process of marketing as medical-health-wellness tourism is a global industry [ 77 ]. International advertisers need to understand the important, contemporary, and cultural characteristics of target customers before promotion [ 80 ]. Similarly, destinations need to portray safe and advanced treatment facilities to dispel potential patient worries and suspicions. Messages related solely to low cost may detract from and even undermine messages about quality [ 71 ]. However, while benefits are highly emphasized online, websites may fail to report any procedural, postoperative, or legal concerns and risks associated with medical tourism [ 81 ].

4.8. Development Environments: Policies and Impacts

The rise of medical-health-wellness tourism emphasizes the privatization of healthcare, an increasing dependence on technology, and the accelerating globalization of healthcare and tourism [ 82 ]. There are challenges and opportunities in the development of these tourism forms. For instance, it has been suggested that medical tourism distorts national health care systems, and raises critical national economic, ethical, and social questions [ 83 ]. Along with the development of medical-health-wellness tourism, social-cultural contradictions [ 84 ] and economic inequities are widening in terms of access, cost, and quality of healthcare [ 85 ]. It is argued that this tourism leads destinations to emphasize tertiary care for foreigners at the expense of basic healthcare for their citizens [ 86 ]. Moreover, in some instances, this phenomenon can exacerbate the medical brain drain from the public sector to the private sector [ 43 , 87 , 88 ], leading to rising private health care and health insurance costs [ 88 ].

While medical-health-wellness tourism is a potential source of revenue, it also brings a certain level of risk to destinations and tourists [ 89 ]. The spread of this type of tourism has been posited as a contributing factor to the spread of infectious diseases and public health crises [ 90 , 91 ]. Medical tourists are at risk of hospital-associated and procedure-related infections as well as diseases endemic to the countries where the service is provided [ 92 ]. Similarly, the safety of some treatments offered has also been the subject of growing levels of scrutiny. Contemporary scholarship examining clinical outcomes in medical travel for cosmetic surgery has identified cases in which patients traveled abroad for medical procedures and subsequently returned home with infections and other surgical complications [ 93 ]. Stem cell tourism has been criticized on the grounds of consumer fraud, blatant lack of scientific justification, and patient safety [ 94 , 95 ]. During the process of medical tourism, inadequate communication, and information asymmetry in cross-cultural communication may bring medical risks [ 96 ].

Medical-health-wellness tourism has emerged as a global healthcare phenomenon. Policy guidance is vital for the development of this sector in the future [ 97 ]. There are policy implications for the planning and development of medical-health-wellness tourism destinations [ 98 ]. Generally, it has been found that the medical-health-wellness tourism sector tends to perform better in countries with a clear policy framework for this activity [ 99 ]. Similarly, scholars have argued the need for a clearer policy framework regulating tourism agencies and the information and services they provide [ 100 ]. The upsurge of these tourism forms presents new opportunities and challenges for policy makers in the health sector. It has been argued that existing policy processes are mainly based on entrenched ideological positions and more attention should be paid to robust evidence of impact [ 101 ]. The UK developed policies focused on ’patient choice’ that allow people who are able and willing to choose to travel further for healthcare [ 102 ]. However, more robust policy making is still required to strengthen national health services and facilitate medical-health-wellness tourism sector development in destinations [ 103 , 104 ].

5. Discussion and Conclusions

5.1. generation discussion.

This study is based on a literature review of 802 articles on medical-health-wellness tourism from 1970 to 2020. Jeremy Snyder was found to be the most prolific author in this field with 45 articles. It has been found that the literature on this topic can be summarized into three themes: markets (tourist demand and behavior), destinations (development and promotion), and development environments (policies and impacts). The scholarly research in this growing field has undergone a shift in emphasis from tourist demand and behavior to the promotion and development of destinations, and, more recently, to policies and impacts.

To attract more tourists, destinations should explore their potential for medical-health-wellness tourism. Accessibility, procedural options, treatment facilities, travel arrangements, safety guarantees, and government policies remain influential factors. In the development and promotion of this form of tourism, childhood vaccinations, oral health, legal frameworks, evaluation systems, entrance systems, and macro-policy continue to be areas of concern and where further research is required. Above all, meeting or exceeding tourist expectations and requirements is the most important consideration to promote medical-health-wellness tourism. Similarly, appropriate policy guidelines and frameworks are necessary to support this form of tourism. Importantly, medical-health-wellness tourism may result in negative impacts on the healthcare service provision for local residents in poorer countries, with tourists from richer countries benefiting to the detriment of local communities. However, if managed successfully, this form of tourism can also be a force for good in terms of fostering the economic development of countries delivering these services.

The results indicated that the research literature is spread across a range of different disciplines and there is not one single venue for publishing in this field. A better integration of the research and improved understanding of the overlaps among medical, health, and wellness tourism is required.

5.2. Future Research Trends

5.2.1. industrial perspective.

Medical-health-wellness tourism will, over time, integrate fully with other healthcare and wellness services. Similarly, medical challenges such as disease prevention and traditional medicine remain essential directions for the future of health tourism. This form of tourism will also integrate further with industries such as wellness culinary tourism, mindfulness tourism, active tourism (including adventure tourism), and even cosmetic surgery tourism, leading to a vast array of potential research avenues linked to health tourism destinations. These futures will greatly promote the physical and mental health of wellness tourists. This is another emerging direction for future medical-health-wellness tourism research.

5.2.2. Destination Development Perspectives

Medical-health-wellness tourism will become more significant forms of tourism and impact the development of different nations and areas. For example, this tourism will integrate with Chinese traditional culture. Traditional treatments and remedies will become more of an advantage and should be a topic for future medical-health-wellness tourism research, as well as in other countries with unique health cultures, treatments, and procedures.

Thailand, Malaysia, and other Southeast Asian countries are favored by tourists from developed countries due to lower costs. In the future, these areas need to focus more on tourism product design, health tourism marketing, community participation, and cross-cultural communication. Developed countries such as the USA, Japan, and South Korea, will use advanced technology and medical equipment to take the path to high-end, high value-added tourism development. This will lead to some new research opportunities.

5.2.3. Tourist Perspectives

Compared with other types of tourists, the needs of medical-health-wellness tourists will receive more attention. Based on previous research, the psychology and perceived value of these tourists are the focus of considerable research. In the future, more emphasis will be paid to people and especially to their psychological and physiological needs. Research on demand will become a more popular topic of this tourism research. Second, the current research on medical-health-wellness tourists is concentrated on the study of tourists in the USA and Canada. Future research should be more dispersed and diversified. Tourists from emerging countries such as Eastern Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa will receive more attention.

5.3. Limitations

This study, inevitably, has a number of limitations, including the relatively modest amount of articles collected. Only articles written in English were considered. The sample number is rather small to represent the general research trends in medical-health-wellness tourism from 1970 to 2020. Therefore, it is desirable to increase the number of publications and expand the time and language coverage of the research articles to gain more insights.

Although the research scope of medical-health-wellness tourism is vast, it lacks in-depth exploration. Current research is fragmented, lacks continuity and comprehensiveness, and therefore cannot be considered systematic. Also, the legal aspects of the development of this tourism, environmental capacity of medical-health tourism, wellness tourism management, and mechanisms of profit distribution for medical-health-wellness tourism are less frequently mentioned in research articles. Innovation in this field and international cooperation, and talent cultivation are also not sufficiently addressed. The methods used in medical-health-wellness tourism research are often simple. Scholars still use traditional descriptive statistics and related analysis methods. The theoretical foundation of medical-health-wellness tourism is still relatively weak. We are in the primary stage of this tourism research and in the development of related tourism products. People all over the world are eager for healthy lives. Medical-health-wellness tourism is likely to play a more important future role in travel medicine and tourism research. Beyond what has been done already, follow-up research should be focused on interdisciplinarity and based on the integration of industries. More theoretical research is necessary to support the future growth of medical-health-wellness tourism.

Author Contributions

Formal analysis, L.Z.; Funding acquisition, L.Z.; Investigation, L.Z.; Supervision, B.D.; Data collection and analysis, B.D.; Writing-original draft, A.M.M. and J.A.C.-S.; Writing—original draft, A.M.M.; Writing—review & editing, A.M.M., J.A.C.-S. and L.Y.; Data collection and analysis. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

National Natural Science Foundation of China, Grant no: 71673015); Ethnic research project of the National Committee of the people’s Republic of China. NO: 2020-GMD-089; Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of Beijing Foreign Studies University, 2021JS001.

Institutional Review Board Statement

No human subjects were involved in this research and no institutional review was required.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable as there were no human subjects.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors have no conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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About the developers.

Renée-Marie Stephano

Renée-Marie Stephano is president and founder of the Medical Tourism Association® and editor-in-chief of Medical Tourism Magazine® and the Health and Wellness Destination Guide Series of books. Ms. Stephano has authored several books from “Developing International Patient Centers, Best Practices in Facilitation,” to “Medical Tourism for Insurers and Employers,” and the most recent, “Engaging Wellness ~ Corporate Wellness Programs that Work.” Her articles have been published in publications all over the world. Most recently she co-authored an article which was peer reviewed and published in Tourism Management Academic Journal. Ms. Stephano is an attorney and specializes in working with governments and hospitals to develop sustainable medical tourism/international patient programs and strategies. To that end she provides consultancy to organizations all over the world. She deals directly with ministers of health, tourism and economic development to establish public-private partnerships that support medical tourism and, at the same time, provide a benefit and return to the local community. Ms. Stephano has performed feasibility studies for cities, nations and hospitals worldwide in which she has relayed opportunities for international expansion, clinical development and affiliations and partnerships. She also consults governments in the development of sustainable medical tourism zones & free healthcare zones. Ms. Stephano is a keynote speaker at international conferences, has spoken at hundreds of events and is a featured source of reference on issues related to health, travel and tourism for media outlets around the world. She is the Executive Director of the International Healthcare Research Center, a 501c(3) organization dedicated to research in medical tourism, wellness travel and corporate wellness. IHRC is the publisher of the Medical Tourism Index (MTI). ‍

Dr. Marc Fetscherin

Dr. Marc Fetscherin is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Rollins College (FL), United States. His expertise is in international marketing with a specialization on marketing strategy, marketing research and branding with a specific focus on global brand management, corporate branding, human brands, consumer brand relationships, and destination branding. Previously, he was a Fellow at Harvard University as well as a researcher at the University of California Berkeley. He taught or teaches MBA and executive MBA courses at various institutions worldwide such as East China University of Science and Technology (China), the Copenhagen Business School (Denmark), Jacobs University(Germany), the University of Lausanne, HEC (Switzerland) or the University of Fribourg (Switzerland). He won multiple teaching and research awards. He has extensive international experience and lived and traveled to over 30 destinations. He speaks 5 languages (German, English, French. Spanish, Russian). Previous his academic career he was a consultant for McKinsey & Company and CEO of a Swiss luxury company. He was also a member of the Federal Commission ofConsumer Affairs, an advisory body for the Swiss Government. He has published 3 books, multiple book chapters and journal articles. His articles have appeared in peer reviewed journals such as Harvard Business Review, Journal of Business Research, International Journal of Market Research, International Marketing Review, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Journal of Brand Management, Journal of Product and Brand Management, Management International Review, International Business Review, or Tourism Management among others. He is in the editorial board of the Journal of Brand Management and the Journal of Place Branding and Public Diplomacy. He is also an Expert for the Association of Place Branding and Public Diplomacy.

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A medical treatment overseas program in australia.

In the next issue of the Medical Tourism Magazine , there will be an incredible story about a five-year-old girl from Australia that travels to Florida to receive Proton Beam Therapy for a brain tumor. During the research process I came across the Medical Treatment Overseas Program (MTOP) offered in Australia. ‍

This program provides financial assistance for Australians with a life-threatening medical condition to receive proven life saving medical treatment overseas where effective treatment is not available in Australia.

There are certain criteria that must be met in order to be approved for financial assistance for example; the Australian medical profession must accept the treatment as a standard form of care for this condition. One of the other criteria is that the treatment must be significantly life-extending and potentially curative. ‍

If all criteria are met this program will cover all expenses associated with treatment and travel. They also cover expenses of bringing along a companion or hired care giver if necessary. There are many more details involved in this process; it will be further explained in the article coming out in April. ‍

I find the MTOP particularly interesting because I had never heard of a program quite like this. I am interested to find out if other countries have programs like this. If anyone has insight on this matter please let me know!

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Informed Decision-Making in Medical Tourism: The Significance of Clinical Outcome Reports

The synergy between telemedicine services and medical tourism marketing, elevating visibility: advanced seo strategies for medical tourism websites, crafting success: building an effective content marketing plan for medical tourism, navigating the future: emerging trends in medical tourism and their marketing implications, crafting a winning brand strategy for medical tourism facilities, the benefits of multi-language marketing in medical tourism, revolutionizing customer service in medical tourism with ai: a paradigm shift, exploring niche markets in medical tourism, continue reading, rise of luxury hospitals: making india a premier medical tourism destination, dr. matthew kaufman- a leader in advancements in reconstructive surgery, unraveling india’s cough syrup death crisis, featured reading, medical tourism events and conferences: a marketing goldmine, navigating cultural competence in medical tourism marketing: a global approach, medical tourism magazine.

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Medical tourism

Patient, organisational and system-level perspectives, groups related to this event.

Centre for Health Informatics

Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research

Centre for Healthcare Resilience and Implementation Science

Thursday, 6 August 2015

Medical Tourism: patient, organisational and system-level perspectives

‘Medical tourism’ is a type of patient or consumer mobility whereby individuals travel outside their own country of residence with the primary intention of receiving medical (usually elective surgery) treatment, incurring out-of-pocket and third-party payments. The medical tourism industry is almost entirely unregulated and this has potential risks for those travelling abroad. Drawing upon the results of a funded study the seminar outlines evidence concern.

• Who goes where, and for what.
• Patient motivation and decision-making.
• Issues relating to quality, safety and risk.
• Implications for local and destination health systems.

Speaker profile

Neil Lunt is Reader in Social Policy, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University of York. He was lead on an NIHR-funded project ‘Inward and outward implications for the NHS of Medical Tourism’ (2011-2014).

He has interests in the organisation, management and delivery of health and social services, and the global mobility of patients, professionals and families.

He has published on these and related issues in a range of journals including Social Science & Medicine , British Medical Journal and Policy & Politics . He is co-editor of the Handbook of Medical Tourism and Patient Mobility (Elgar, 2015).

Date: 6 August 2015

Time: 12-1 pm

Venue: Level 1 Seminar Room, 75 Talavera Road

Chairperson: A/Prof David Greenfield

Content owner: Australian Institute of Health Innovation Last updated: 11 Mar 2024 7:03pm

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The Australian Medical Tourism Market – Statistics and Data

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Medical tourism in Australia is back after almost two years of lockdowns. With the government finally easing restrictions on travel, many Aussies are packing their bags to find affordable medical and dental care in other countries.

A Profile of Medical Tourism in Australia

In Australia, medical tourism statistics show that tens of thousands of people leave the country each year for treatment abroad.

A profile of medical tourism in Australia revealed that natives are interested in traveling abroad for major surgeries to everything in between. Before the lockdowns, Australians spent an estimated $300 million on cosmetic surgery tourism alone.

While there is some inbound medical tourism, most of it is outbound. However, the patients that come into Australia are primarily from New Zealand .

COVID-19 Restrictions and Lockdowns in Australia

As one of the leading outbound medical tourism destinations, Australians can now leave the country since the borders are open.

Many Australians were stuck at home for 18 months despite over 80% of the adults in the country being vaccinated, and traveling to obtain medical care abroad wasn’t an acceptable reason to travel, so many had to postpone treatments. At the moment, as long as people are vaccinated, they can go to other nations.  

Many are Flocking to Thailand and Other Asian Countries for Healthcare

Thousands of Australians flock to Asian countries annually because of the reduced cost of healthcare. A popular destination for medical tourists in Australia is Thailand. Around 60% of them are there for cosmetic surgery and elective procedures, and a significant minority also go for major cardiothoracic and orthopedic procedures.

Australians Traveling for Dental tourism

Outbound dental tourism is booming, and Australian dental tourism statistics show that many people are looking for alternatives. This is mainly due to the country’s high cost of dental care.

Many dental tourists are going to other nations because getting dental care abroad costs a fraction of what it costs in Australia.

Australians can save up to 75% compared to the dental prices in their country. Most Australian dental tourists choose to get treatment in South Korea, Thailand, Turkey, India, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Final Thoughts   

Australia is a thriving place for outbound medical tourism, and plenty of people are looking for ways to get cheaper dental and medical procedures abroad. At Medical Tourism Business , we can help you build and expand your brand. Our insight on industry best practices, trends, and knowledge of medical travel can help you get the marketing, certifications, and contracts necessary to grow.

Reach Your Full Potential in Medical Tourism with MTB

At MTB, we are dedicated to supporting professionals and organizations in the medical tourism industry as they strive for success. As a leading provider of certification, contracts, marketing, and support, we offer comprehensive programs, expert guidance, and valuable resources that are designed to help our members achieve their goals and reach their full potential in the global healthcare market. With a focus on excellence and innovation, we help our members stay ahead of the competition and navigate the complex and dynamic world of medical tourism.

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Why is medical tourism from Australia booming?

A growing number of australians are choosing to go overseas, especially to asia, for medical procedures in a trend known as medical tourism..

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• Correspondence
• Open access
• Published: 05 February 2013

Australian news media framing of medical tourism in low- and middle-income countries: a content review

• Michelle Imison 1 &
• Stephen Schweinsberg 2  

BMC Public Health volume  13 , Article number:  109 ( 2013 ) Cite this article

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Medical tourism – travel across international borders for health care – appears to be growing globally, with patients from high-income nations increasingly visiting low- and middle-income countries to access such services. This paper analyses Australian television and newspaper news and current affairs coverage to examine how medical tourism and these destinations for the practice are represented to media audiences.

Electronic copies of Australian television ( n  = 66) and newspaper ( n  = 65) items from 2005–2011 about medical care overseas were coded for patterns of reporting (year, format and type) and story characteristics (geographic and medical foci in the coverage, news actors featured and appeals, credibility and risks of the practice mentioned).

Australian media coverage of medical tourism was largely focused on Asia, featuring cosmetic surgery procedures and therapies unavailable domestically. Experts were the most frequently-appearing news actors, followed by patients. Common among the types of appeals mentioned were access to services and low cost. Factors lending credibility included personal testimony, while uncertainty and ethical dilemmas featured strongly among potential risks mentioned from medical tourism.

Conclusions

The Australian media coverage of medical tourism was characterised by a narrow range of medical, geographic and ethical concerns, a focus on individual Australian patients and on content presented as being personally relevant for domestic audiences. Medical tourism was portrayed as an exercise of economically-rational consumer choice, but with no attention given to its consequences for the commodification of health or broader political, medical and ethical implications. In this picture, LMICs were no longer passive recipients of aid but providers of a beneficial service to Australian patients.

Peer Review reports

The mainstream news media are central to the formation of public ideas about health and medicine in high-income countries, and about the world beyond our nations’ borders [ 1 , 2 ]. Both broadcast and print coverage in high-income nations tend to provide limited menus of topics and approaches to different areas of news interest, driven by what is logistically and culturally accessible for media outlets, and perceptions of what is personally and strategically important to audiences and governments [ 3 – 7 ]. Previous research that combines a focus on health/medical and foreign news has shed light on the Australian media’s portrayal of health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and demonstrated how little is known about similar coverage of LMICs in other national contexts [ 8 ]. In relation to the content of Australian LMIC health coverage, much reporting is simplified – to what might be termed a ‘disease, disaster and despair’ focus – and the imperative of highlighting some Australian domestic element remains especially important [ 9 ].

The Australian media reverses some of these expectations and patterns in its coverage of medical tourism, making this phenomenon a particularly interesting one to examine. ‘Medical tourism’ is defined here as individuals – specifically those from high-income nations and often with some intention to include a holiday with their travel – crossing national borders to access non-emergency medical services not otherwise available in their home (source) country because of high costs, long waiting lists, limited health-care capacity or regulatory restrictions [ 10 – 12 ]. Health-related travel has been a characteristic of global tourism since antiquity [ 13 ]. However, it is only relatively recently that travelling for medical services has become a distinct practice, for reasons broadly related to the global rise of the middle class, the increased availability of low-cost air travel and developments in medical technology [ 14 ]. As a high-income nation, Australia is a prospective source country for medical tourists.

The narrative accounts of Canadian medical tourists indicate that cost was a significant factor among a heterogenous set of motivations that propelled them to seek care overseas [ 15 ]. Because of the importance of this consideration in medical-tourism decision-making, much of the recent growth in medical tourism has been in LMICs as a result of their lower costs for labour and construction, preferential tax regimes and cheaper or non-existent practitioner insurance [ 13 , 16 ]. Many countries across Central and South America, eastern Europe and Asia now provide medical tourism services, specialising in particular types of surgery or travel experiences [ 17 , 18 ]. This has numerous, potentially positive consequences for destination countries, including the ability to earn foreign income, the opportunity to raise the standard of domestic health-care by helping to underwrite the expansion of public service-provision and improving coverage by enticing emigrant medical practitioners to return [ 10 , 13 , 14 , 16 ]. Although widely-cited figures estimate that medical tourism to Asia will generate US$4.4b in annual revenue for the region by 2012 [ 19 ], there is a dearth of reliable information on the numbers of medical tourists and the economic benefit they provide. Even though the phenomenon appears to be growing globally, there are no robust data for any destination country [ 20 , 21 ] and analysis of medical tourist numbers, narrowly defined, would seem to indicate that industry estimates are usually overstated [ 22 ]. In addition, there are also major possible downsides for those nations that pursue medical tourism: the failure of financial and medical-personnel gains to ‘trickle down’ to advantage the wider population, increased drift of healthcare workers to particular geographic locations and specialties and the chance that contagions and drug-resistant infections may more easily spread across the globe [ 23 – 26 ].

The growth of medical tourism has been assisted by the development of both travel and medical services in LMICs [ 27 ], and their ability to attract international medical tourists relies on the promotion of an image that stresses the quality of available health-care. Exemplary among such services are Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok and India’s Apollo Hospitals Group, corporate medical outfits that not only offer treatment in their own facilities for international patients but have also begun acquiring and managing hospitals elsewhere in Asia [ 23 , 24 ]. This state of affairs challenges the usual media depiction in high-income nations of LMICs as inherently ‘unhealthy’ and medically-unsophisticated environments [ 8 ]. The limited existing research into the coverage of medical tourism in the English-language media of both destination and source countries has demonstrated that voices of ethical concern have been overwhelmed by medical tourism’s dominant market and consumer discourses [ 28 ]. Although a good deal of academic literature on medical tourism refers to media coverage of the phenomenon as a proxy for public interest, most does not look in-depth at media content [ 16 , 17 , 19 , 29 ]. This research aims to bridge that gap, reporting on coverage from a large Australian television and newspaper dataset; media-related work to date has focused on Europe and Canada [ 28 ]. The purposes of this paper, then, are to analyse the content of relevant television and newspaper items, examine how medical tourism and the LMIC destination countries a for this practice are presented to Australians in their news and current affairs, and explore the possible implications of this portrayal.

Television items were drawn from the University of Sydney’s Australian Health News Research Collaboration (AHNRC) digital database. The AHNRC dataset includes all health-related news and current affairs items aired on Sydney’s five free-to-air television stations (three commercial and two at least partly publicly-funded). The sample extends from May 2005, when the database was established, until the end of June 2011, when analysis commenced. The AHNRC’s content and inclusion criteria have been described elsewhere [ 30 ]. This television dataset comprised all items that mentioned elective medical care overseas, including items about procedures such as overseas surrogacy and living-donor organ transplants (‘transplant tourism’) whose definition as ‘medical tourism’ might fall outside classifications used elsewhere in the literature [ 12 , 31 , 32 ]. That these practices are controversial and either heavily regulated or banned in Australia, yet such stories were still broadcast, indicates that there was deemed to be domestic interest in these topics and thus they formed a legitimate part of our dataset.

In order to examine the fullest possible picture of what Australian audiences were shown about medical tourism, these television data were supplemented with print items extracted from the Factiva database of Australian newspaper coverage for the same time-period. We used the search terms ‘medical tourism’, ‘cosmetic tourism’, ‘scalpel tourism’, ‘reproductive tourism’ and ‘transplant tourism’ to locate English-language content that appeared in any non-specialist, non-trade Australian metropolitan or regional newspapers. Excluded were duplicate items, those that made only passing reference to the phenomenon and those concerning inbound medical tourism, since these items invariably focused on what the Australian health system could offer potential patients. Previous research has demonstrated that online news is largely sourced from a small number of existing, traditional news outlets [ 33 ]. As television and newspapers therefore offer widely-disseminated content which is also supplied to online outlets, web news was not included in the present study.

The selected television and newspaper content was initially coded in relation to patterns of reporting: year and location of broadcast/publication, format and story type [ 34 ] (Table  1 ). Items were classed as being either ‘news’ or ‘feature’, with content included in the ‘news’ category if there was a discrete trigger for medical tourism having become news – for instance, a political announcement, public event or report of research findings. The ‘feature’ category included media items that were less dependent on such time-bound prompts for their broadcast or publication; they often included strong human-interest elements or reported on medical tourism broadly as a social phenomenon. News and feature items were then further classified as being either focused on or simply mentioning medical tourism. One item of ‘advice’ – a travel journalist’s response to a reader question about medical tourism – and a letter to the editor were also coded.

We then examined the characteristics of the media coverage by way of a content analysis. The nations, main medical procedures and conditions/treatments mentioned, and any news actors quoted directly (by both type and number) were noted for each television and newspaper item (Tables  2 and 3 ). A modified version of an existing framework, developed to assess medical tourism websites [ 35 ], was then applied to the television and newspaper items. This framework was expanded iteratively by the first author as part of a process of reviewing the coverage and noting important concepts that emerged, while excluding elements of the existing coding schema that were irrelevant to the examination of television and newspaper items – for example, aspects of interactivity. No coding software was used. The broad categories employed were:

appeals – features of medical tourism mentioned in an item, either by the journalist or by a news actor, as attractive for a potential or actual patient,

credibility – dimensions of the medical tourism experience mentioned, either by the journalist or by a news actor, or referenced visually to give it integrity or authority in the mind of a potential or actual patient [ 16 ] and

risks – aspects of medical tourism mentioned, either by the journalist or by a news actor, as a source of actual or perceived risk, and perhaps as a reason not to proceed with an overseas medical procedure.

Related concepts within each of these categories are discussed, and sample characteristics for both television and newspaper items described in detail, in the next section. The first author coded the entirety of the dataset. A selection of 20% of the items, chosen by a random number generator from across the television and newspaper corpus, was then analysed by the second author.

Sixty-seven items of television news and current affairs coverage concerned with some aspect of international travel for medical treatment were identified, from a total of 28 580 items in the AHNRC’s database, of which 1355 were specifically about LMIC health. One item about medical tourism inbound to Australia was excluded. There were 90 potential newspaper items identified and then further checked to remove duplicates and assess relevance, as described in the previous section, leaving 65 items for analysis. Due to the numerous aspects of appeal, credibility and risk to be compared for each media item, agreement between authors was assessed by calculating the proportion of concepts on which both authors agreed. A high proportion of agreement was found for both television (81.6%) and newspaper (80.2%) items. For both Australian television and newspaper coverage, media interest in medical tourism peaked in 2007–08 (Table  1 ), with a further peak in newspaper coverage during 2010–11. News, as opposed to feature, stories focused on the subject were chiefly about the growth in ‘transplant tourism’, especially in relation to the sources of organs used and the ethics of their collection.

Television coverage of medical tourism was almost entirely focused on Asian countries ( n  = 63) (Table  2 ). The majority of medical concern in this media content was with cosmetic surgery ( n  = 20), stem-cell treatments ( n  = 15) and a variety of reproductive therapies ( n  = 13) including overseas surrogacy and gender-selective in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). Although there were several items about the controversial area of ‘transplant tourism’ ( n  = 9) more complex procedures and possible consequences, such as novel, drug-resistant infections that might be introduced by returning medical tourists ( n  = 2), were not well-represented overall in the dataset. Patients were the most common ‘news actors’ (individuals interviewed) ( n  = 69) to speak about medical tourism in television news and current affairs, over 80% of them female ( n  = 58). Among other news actors, ‘experts’ – medical specialists, researchers and scientists in relevant disciplines and representatives of the medical professions – featured heavily ( n  = 68), around half of them Australian. About three-quarters of the remaining expert commentators were from the LMIC contexts with which the television news items were concerned, the remainder being from other high-income nations. None of those involved directly in performing overseas procedures were Australian, but commentary from domestic professionals was often sought on, for example, the wisdom of travelling for medical treatment. Other stakeholders featured in television stories included medical tourism facilitators and representatives of overseas hospitals ( n  = 26), patients’ family members ( n  = 22), political actors in various locations ( n  = 8) and individuals from destination countries such as kidney donors ( n  = 13) and surrogate mothers ( n  = 2).

‘Access to services’ was most common among the attractions of medical tourism mentioned in the television dataset (referred to in 62.1% of stories). Subsequent appeals included low cost (36.4%), being able to ‘feel good’ (21.2%), the opportunity to travel (16.7%) and the lack of waiting time (13.6%). As to the characteristics of stories that gave credibility to medical tourism, personal testimonial was the most-used technique (referred to in 50% of stories), which is consistent with the large number of patient news actors. The number of international patients, or reference to an estimate of such figures, was also frequently cited to lend credence to the medical-tourism phenomenon or to a particular destination (42.4%). Finally, of the risks mentioned, ‘ethical dilemmas’ was the largest single category (referred to in 53% of stories). A sense of uncertainty about medical tourism – for instance, in relation to the quality of treatment, standard of practitioner qualification or sterility of equipment – also pervaded the television dataset (50%).

Without the same obligation as television to match textual content with constantly-changing images, newspaper stories (Table  3 ) were more wide-ranging in their interest; many items mentioned several countries or types of procedure rather than just a few examples. The broader geographical focus is evidence of this trend, although Asian nations still predominated ( n  = 59). Cosmetic surgery again dominated in relation to medical focus ( n  = 29), even more so than in the television coverage. The newspaper items were generally concerned with interventions of greater or lesser complexity, such as orthopaedic, dental and cardiac surgeries – but the second-largest single group of stories was about the contentious area of ‘transplant tourism’ ( n  = 22). There were also fewer types of news actors, although the pattern of those represented was similar to that in the television coverage: experts ( n  = 56), about 80% of them Australian, with the remainder split fairly evenly between individuals from LMICs and high-income nations; patients ( n  = 27), medical tourism facilitators and hospital representatives ( n  = 23), government spokespeople or politicians ( n  = 16) and patients’ family members ( n  = 7).

The tone of the newspaper dataset was much more a marketing one, with the main appeal being that of low cost (referred to in 53.8% of stories), with travel opportunities (32.2%) and ability to ‘feel good’ (29.2%) also important. However, access to services (36.9%) and lack of waiting time (33.8%) emerged strongly because of the number of stories about ‘transplant tourism’. The newspaper items contained fewer personal testimonials than did the television data (18.5%). Instead, their major means of establishing credibility was via reference to the number of international patients visiting a country or facility for medical-tourism purposes (35.4%). In addition, the emphasis in any mention of risk was foremost about the procedures themselves – uncertainty (69.2%), possible complications (47.7%) – and only then about the ethical dimensions of the practice (36.9%). This approach, and a certain perception of LMICs, was perhaps best summed up in one television story when an Australian provider of domestic cosmetic surgery asked rhetorically during an interview, ‘if you can’t drink the water there, why would you let them operate on you?’.

This study examined Australian television and print news and current affairs coverage of medical tourism: its type and format, content – the countries, types of procedures and news actors featured – and the extent to which the appeals, credibility and risks of medical tourism were mentioned. This section considers what messages about medical tourism and its LMIC destination countries were presented in the coverage.

The media portrayal of medical tourism reflects several trends identified in earlier research concerning the Australian domestic coverage of both LMICs and their health status [ 8 ]. First, the topics represented among the 131 media items analysed were concentrated around a total of just ten major medical foci (Tables  2 and 3 ): a range of surgical interventions, reproductive and regenerative procedures, and the threat of novel infections brought into the country by returning medical tourists. This set of concerns is similarly narrow to those previously noted in an investigation of the Australian media’s reporting of international humanitarian issues [ 4 ]. Geographic attention in both television and newspaper items was largely on Asian nations, due to their proximity and consequent significance as a cluster of inexpensive destinations with which Australians already have some familiarity as both ‘backyards’ and ‘playgrounds’ [ 36 ]. The newspaper data evidenced somewhat more extensive geographic and medical emphases. Yet this broader focus did not extend to risk considerations, which remained largely limited to individual patients’ personal or legal interests. This latter observation reflects the findings of a Canadian qualitative study of medical tourists, who spoke about the ethical dimensions of their particular decision to travel for treatment in terms of what they perceived as aspects of domestic health provision that had forced them abroad: namely, the waiting times and systemic limitations which, in turn, justified their ‘queue-jumping’ [ 37 ].

Second, the restricted medical, geographic and risk concerns evident in the Australian media coverage of medical tourism were reinforced by its emphasis on identified individuals who had undergone surgery. That patients featured so prominently among news actors in both television and newspaper coverage is consistent with the use of sources in health and medical news: those affected by a health problem provide an appealing and ‘authentic’ contrast to the media presentation of statistics or research [ 30 ]. Yoking such ‘newsworthy’ but otherwise abstract material to an individual narrative personalises the story, in line with the centrality of ‘human interest’ to general news and current affairs [ 38 ]; the items in these datasets invariably used medical tourists’ experiences as ‘hooks’ for a wider discussion of the phenomenon. Although not all patient news actors had happy experiences to relate, every story that presented medical tourism in a positive light included at least one delighted patient. Third, the high proportion of Australians among all those interviewed mirrors the inclination toward domestic sources in LMIC news more broadly [ 8 ]. There was far less media attention given to those who make certain types of medical tourism possible, such as surrogate mothers and organ donors.

Finally the extent to which the media content sought to establish a sense of personal relevance for audience members, a characteristic that has previously been noted in the Australian coverage of LMIC health [ 8 ], partially explains the patterns of appeals, credibility and risks in the presentation of medical tourism. Among the television items, the attraction of ‘access to services’ appeared most frequently as a result of the number of stories about stem-cell and reproductive therapies not legally available to patients in Australia, with ‘access to ‘medical breakthrough” not much further down the list (referred to in 21.2% of stories). The focus on these procedures, too, made ‘ethical dilemmas’ (53%) the largest single category of risk evident in the television coverage. Subsequently in both television and newspaper datasets the common appeals of low cost, being able to ‘feel good’, the opportunity to travel and the lack of waiting time were consistent with the large amount of coverage related to cosmetic surgery, which was presented as a matter of ‘lifestyle choice’ for those willing and able to pay. Among the newspaper items nearly half mentioned the risk of complications (47.7%), as a result of the interest in certain, more complex (transplant and orthopaedic) surgeries. Portraying medical tourism as an extension of the bargain-hunters’ holiday that Australian travellers in Asia have long enjoyed, on which the greatest satisfaction is derived in purchasing desirable goods at the lowest possible price, promotes a kind of medical ‘shop-til-you-drop’ approach, with unrestricted access to procedures that are not necessarily required or recommended – and ultimately, a commodification of health-care [ 24 ].

Given the various dimensions of uncertainty surrounding medical tourism, we might assume that potential medical tourists approach this healthcare option with heightened perceptions of its associated risks [ 35 ]. Yet in its presentation of medical tourism, Australian news and current affairs coverage of the practice more often referenced some aspect of the actions of other medical tourists (the numbers who take part, and their personal experiences) than any reliable medical consideration. Mentions of a health facility’s international accreditation (referred to in 12.1% and 4.6% of television and newspaper stories, respectively), medical practitioners’ biography or education (10.6% and 12.3%) and ease of contacting a health-care provider following a procedure (6% and 4.6%) ranked fairly low down the list of such factors in both television and newspaper items. There is little opportunity for individuals to verify this key information and, at any rate, few medical tourists would have the requisite knowledge to properly assess a hospital’s reputation or a doctor’s skills for themselves – despite the confident assertion by many patient news actors that they had ‘done their research’ online before committing to travel. An interview study with Canadian medical tourism facilitators found that most of their ‘referrals’ came via word-of-mouth or websites [ 39 ] – and crucial sources of relevant online information are offered by commercial interests [ 40 ]. Investigations into the presentation of appeal and risk on medical tourism websites have previously noted that testimonials, a common technique in general advertising and used liberally in this Australian media dataset, are of limited value to would-be medical tourists since they provide no insight into the individual-level differences that might influence medical outcomes [ 35 ].

Such a presentation is troubling since the notion of ‘choice’ and the associated power of the healthcare consumer are central to the medical tourism phenomenon [ 16 ] and feature prominently in its Australian television and newspaper coverage. The mention of diverse and contrasting appeals and risks across the media dataset would appear to reinforce a belief that audiences, as an exercise of their freedom to choose, can make up their own minds. This approach is also understandable in editorial terms, with ‘balance’ a significant tenet of journalistic practice. However, presenting information from sources of varying legitimacy as though they were equally valid might properly be considered a form of bias [ 41 ] and may leave audience members confused as to their best course of action. The television items examined here appeared largely on commercial networks, which are under sustained pressure to produce widely-engaging content at the lowest cost [ 42 ]. In this context feature stories, which comprised the bulk of this coverage (Table  1 ) and that reported medical tourism as a minority practice in Australian social life, make both economic and ratings sense [ 8 ]. That the print items were mostly published in metropolitan newspapers reflects the mainly urban distribution of Australia’s population. It also suggests that this coverage does not merely give an account of the current domestic reality of medical tourism but is also aspirational, demonstrating to a wide and relatively affluent audience why and how they might participate in the practice.

Since our findings showed that both television and newspaper portrayals placed greater emphasis on the appeals than the risks or factors lending credibility to medical tourism, it was perhaps unsurprising that the ethical interest expressed in this coverage was also largely at the level of the individual Australian patient, their experiences and feelings about the process. Canadian research into medical tourists’ own understanding of their health-related travel has demonstrated a disjunction between the system-level ethical concerns of academic literature on the practice and the personal ones expressed by medical tourists; indeed, many of those interviewed were puzzled by questions about any possible larger ethical implications [ 37 ]. Yet as mentioned above medical tourism has huge, potential medical and political consequences for both source and destination countries. While it doubtless benefits some patients from high-income nations and the large corporate medical outfits that have increasingly arisen to serve this market [ 24 ], the advantages for local populations – including ‘direct’ providers like surrogate mothers and organ donors – are less certain [ 16 , 26 ]. In our data one, lengthy television current affairs story and three shorter follow-up pieces examined the gap in quality between the private healthcare offered to medical tourists in India and the public services available to that country’s citizens, but these were the only media items to engage with the possible effects of medical tourism for health in LMICs. Four stories – one on an overseas knee reconstruction and three about cosmetic surgery – mentioned some health-system outcomes, but only insofar as they related to subsequent burdens for Australian healthcare.

Presenting medical tourism as simply another option available to the wealthy may inhibit appropriate policy development in source countries as, for example, growing numbers of medical tourists diminish the incentives for governments to expand their domestic health workforces [ 43 ]. Although in recent years private organisations such as the US-based Joint Commission International (JCI) have accredited health-care facilities in numerous LMICs [ 44 ], medical tourism otherwise remains largely unregulated: Australia and Canada, for instance, have no national health and safety guidelines on patient or practitioner involvement in the practice [ 45 ]. Likewise efforts in destination countries have, to date, been piecemeal: India now has a special medical tourist visa but has otherwise left sectoral regulation to its private medical providers [ 46 ]. Many medical-tourism destinations have less strict medical liability provisions than source countries, restricting patient options for legal recourse and compensation; some medical tourism facilitators include insurance in their prices and patients may take out their own policies [ 10 , 14 ]. In the absence of official, medical directives and within the prevailing framework of medical tourism as a customer’s prerogative, the presentation to Australian media audiences of any hazards arising from the practice was a combination of anecdotal, patient evidence and a healthy dose of ‘buyer beware’.

Equally instructive in examining the content of any media corpus is the matter of what it does not contain. Cosmetic surgery was, until recent times, reasonably uncommon and presented to media audiences as mainly the province of professionally vain female celebrities, whose medical outcomes were sometimes the occasion for a mixture of bemusement and horror [ 47 ]. This cultural dynamic has clearly shifted. Across the television and newspaper items investigated here, cosmetic surgery was the dominant medical focus, yet never once were the – again, mainly female – patients censured for vanity. Instead their decision to do ‘something that I’ve always dreamed about’ and fix ‘a few imperfections’ was portrayed sympathetically, and as largely another manifestation of consumer choice – in this case an economically rational one, since the decision to go overseas was so often presented as being motivated by the lower prices charged for such procedures elsewhere. It is also interesting to consider how medical tourism would be presented in the domestic media if the phenomenon looked similar to its LMIC manifestation: namely, small but growing numbers of wealthy overseas patients travelling to Australia for health-care. A recent scoping study, prepared for the Australian government, on inbound medical tourism gives some idea of the perceived benefits from this practice. Again, they are presented in highly rational, mostly economic, terms: attracting foreign currency, reducing the medical professional ‘brain drain’ of health workers and providing extra resources for investment into the local health system [ 48 ]. The study points out that Australian education is already marketed to international student ‘customers’ in the same way that medical services now might be.

The context for most of the world’s travel for medical care is quite banal: it would appear to take place largely between LMICs themselves, over short distances, across borders and within regions, although there is a lack of valid data on the size and direction of such patient flows [ 14 , 46 ]. However, media coverage of the practice for Australian audience presented it as being primarily about long-distance journeys for non-essential, often cosmetic, procedures. The picture offered in this television and newspaper data of LMICs themselves was similarly distorted: no longer simply passive recipients of external financial and technical assistance these nations were now sources of benefit to Australians, in the form of low-cost, convenient and even enjoyable combinations of health-care and travel. In this, the Australian media’s presentation of medical tourism departs from how LMICs are usually covered in mainstream news and current affairs. Rather than attracting attention because of the health problems felt to be ‘typical’ of such locations – communicable disease, injury and child health, with no emphasis on emerging problems such as chronic disease [ 8 ] – instead it is LMICs’ credentialled experts and advanced facilities that are touted to local audiences. The ambivalence and complexity of LMIC destinations courting medical tourists in national self-interest while, to varying degrees, failing to adequately meet the health-care needs of their own citizens [ 23 ] is a poor fit with the simpler Australian media narrative of individual choice and personal gain. Medical tourism is likely to continue growing, with increased foreign investment in private health-care in LMICs, improved access to technology in these countries, continued ‘word of mouth’ about the practice, the intensification of its marketing and persistent cost differentials between source and destination countries [ 13 ]. In addition, many American insurers are moving toward sending patients requiring complex medical procedures offshore in their attempts to reduce the financial burden of employee healthcare [ 19 ]. This growth is significant because, although medical tourism has consequences for both social justice and health equity, what it will mean in the longer term for public health is far from settled.

There are several limitations to the current study. Although there was careful and comprehensive quantification of the content categories discussed, this coding could not account for the quality, importance or strength of each of these elements within the television or newspaper items surveyed. Further, this research could not account for any effects on potential medical tourists’ decision-making of the media content examined. Future studies into the media coverage of medical tourism could usefully address each of these areas by continuing qualitative research with past or potential medical tourists [ 15 ] in order to better understand how elements of appeal, credibility and risk played a part in their choice; and undertaking comparative analysis of similar media datasets from other destination and source countries.

The present research explored the content of Australian television and newspaper coverage of medical tourism, and the presentation of both medical tourism and its LMIC destinations. It revealed that this portrayal is in line with broader domestic media coverage of LMIC health, with its narrow medical, geographic and ethical foci, and emphases on Australian participants and commentators as the principal actors through whom the medical tourism phenomenon is understood. In addition the impression of medical tourism advanced to audiences is a quite specific one, of affluent customers for health-care making rational choices based on individual desire for particular services (low cost, ability to travel and being able to ‘feel good’) and appetite for risk (uncertainty). Within this consumer-focused frame, the patient experience and medical outcome are presented as being of equal importance, and any broader concerns are pushed aside. As medical tourism to LMICs is increasingly perceived as a viable health-care option for citizens of nations such as Australia, understanding its appeals to audiences will become more important.

a Countries that feature in news items used in preparing this paper are all identified as low- or middle-income countries, as defined by WHO [ 49 ].

Abbreviations

Australian Health News Research Collaboration

In-vitro fertilisation

Joint Commission International

Low- and middle-income country.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Timothy Schlub for his advice in choosing and calculating the proportion of agreement statistic, Simon Holding for his meticulous collection of the television data, and Simon Chapman, John Connell and our two reviewers for helpful comments on earlier drafts of the paper.

MI and SS are employed by their respective Universities. This work was supported by a Capacity Building Grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council ( http://www.nhmrc.gov.au ) to the Australian Health News Research Collaboration (2009–2013) [571376]. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript.

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MI designed the study, conducted the initial data analysis and coding, and calculated the proportion of agreement. MI and SS reviewed the coding, developed the content categories and wrote the paper. Both authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Imison, M., Schweinsberg, S. Australian news media framing of medical tourism in low- and middle-income countries: a content review. BMC Public Health 13 , 109 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-13-109

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Medical tourism

Travel insurance does not cover medical tourism (e.g. going overseas for a medical procedure), including cosmetic surgery..

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Does travel insurance cover medical tourism?

What is medical tourism, are you covered by the reciprocal health care agreement for cosmetic surgery overseas, should you get travel insurance cover, still need travel insurance.

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What you need to know

• Travel insurance rarely covers you for medical tourism trips.
• You will need a specialised health insurance policy that covers costs associated with your procedure.
• Travel insurance only covers unknown events – not procedures you knew about in advance.

No. Travel insurance does not cover medical tourism (e.g. going overseas to receive medical treatment). It only covers unforseen events – for example, getting sick and needing medical attention while you're overseas. It does not cover pre-planned medical procedures.

It may be possible to get health insurance for medically necessary procedures. Some companies have arrangements with hospitals overseas. However, it will never cover cosmetic surgery (and neither will travel insurance) because it is not considered medically necessary.

The term medical tourism refers to the practice of combining elective surgery with a holiday abroad. It is now a multi-million dollar industry in Australia, with an estimated 15,000 of us travelling overseas every year for cut-price treatments that includes plastic surgery, breast implants and enhancements, weight loss procedures and dental treatment.

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A reciprocal health care agreement (RHCA) is an agreement in place between the Australian government and the government of a foreign country. Under such an agreement, Australian citizens can receive subsidised access to basic health care treatment that is immediately necessary. There are currently agreements in place with the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, Belgium, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Sweden, Slovenia, Finland and Norway.

However, RHCAs do not provide any cover for Australian travellers undergoing elective treatment, so you won't be covered for overseas cosmetic surgery or any resulting complications.

Just because you're planning to undergo elective surgery during your trip doesn't mean that you won't be able to take out a travel insurance policy . It just means you won't be able to receive cover for any losses related to the surgery.

However, you will be able to receive cover for all other losses you incur on your holiday provided they are not related to the surgery. Travel insurance can provide cover for the following:

• Overseas emergency medical and hospital expenses. If you suffer an unexpected illness or injury on your journey, you'll be covered for the cost of ambulance transportation, medical treatment, hospital accommodation and repatriation if required.
• Additional accommodation and travel expenses. If you can't travel due to an injury or illness overseas, the extra accommodation and travel expenses you incur as a result will be covered.
• Cancellation fees and lost deposits. If circumstances beyond your control force you to cancel or cut short your trip, for example, if your travelling companion suffers a serious illness, the cancellation fees you are charged and any non-refundable deposits you have paid will be covered.
• Luggage and personal belongings. The cost of repairing or replacing lost, stolen and damaged personal belongings will be included in cover.
• Travel delay. When your trip is delayed by circumstances outside your control, you'll receive funds to cover your additional meals and accommodation expenses.
• Accidental death and permanent disability. Lump-sum benefits are payable if you become permanently disabled or die as a result of an injury suffered on your journey.
• Cash and travel documents. Theft of cash and the loss, theft or damage of your important travel documents are all covered.
• Rental vehicle excess. If your rental car is crashed, stolen or damaged, you'll receive cover for the rental vehicle insurance excess you need to pay.
• Personal liability. Travel insurance also offers protection if you cause bodily injury to someone else or damage their property during your journey.

If you're heading abroad to receive medical treatment, you won't find a travel insurance policy that'll cover you for losses related to your cosmetic procedure, but it's a good idea to protect yourself from other common insurable events.

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Gary Ross Hunter is an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146).

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Hair loss is big business in the medical tourism industry, and Türkiye's transplant clinics are cashing in

On the streets of Istanbul, they are unmissable: groups of young men with heads swaddled in gauze, their scalps pricked a glistening red.

You can find them year-round marvelling at the grandeur of the Blue Mosque, haggling at the Grand Bazaar, and queuing at the check-in counter at the airport.

Few are Turkish, nor stay in town more than a few days – just long enough to recover from their surgeries before travelling home again.

All however come with the same singular mission: to find an antidote to their baldness.

"My father's side, my mother's side, they've all been losing their hair," said Paymaan Shahrokhey, who arrived in Istanbul from Sydney last summer after he noticed his receding hairline.

"It's just a matter of time. And I thought we're going on a holiday to Europe. Why not come and get it done?"

Since the turn of the century, Türkiye has become a mecca for hair transplants, a cosmetic procedure that involves taking healthy follicles from the back of the head and implanting them on the crown.

Hundreds of thousands of mainly young men make the pilgrimage from around the world every year, according to tourism officials, to contribute to an industry that was worth $3 billion in 2022.

In Australia, the procedure can cost more than $20,000, but in Türkiye it's anywhere between a tenth to a quarter of that, while still offering in some instances high standards of care.

Clinics compete fiercely for customers who largely come from the Arab world, the United States and Europe, offering all-inclusive packages sold using flashy marketing.

Promotional videos show customers months after their procedure confidently showing off lush heads of hair as their wives and girlfriends marvel proudly.

Celebrities like Lewis Hamilton, Steve Carell, Matthew McConaughey and Gordon Ramsay are reported to have had the treatment.

At the Smile Hair Clinic, a multi-storey building overlooking a busy highway deep in Istanbul's Asian side, the waiting area feels like the lobby of an upmarket hotel rather than a medical practice.

Glass chandeliers hang from the ceiling and staff offer refreshments to customers waiting idly for their appointment.

An adjoining room fitted to look like a barber shop doubles as a social media studio to record customer testimonials, which are posted to the company's more than a million Instagram followers.

Aside from surgical staff, the clinic employs a team of six to push content through online channels, where the vast majority of new clients are to be found.

Sales staff say openly they are "selling confidence", and often deal directly with the wives or girlfriends of prospective customers.

"It may not be a great issue for some people to be bald, but most of the people who come here tell us, 'Oh, you changed my life,'" said Smile co-founder and hair transplant surgeon Gökay Bilgin.

"It's really crucial for them to take nice pictures or maybe even to get intimate."

At their core, hair transplants offer little more than an illusion of hair growth using carefully placed grafts to give the impression of a dense head of hair.

If a patient does not take proper care of their head during the months-long recovery, it can cause damage to the implanted follicles.

In the first weeks after the procedure, patients are instructed they cannot shower or work out – water pressure and sweating on the scalp risk dislodging newly implanted follicles.

Upon returning home, many find their sleep suffers as they cannot lie flat in bed for fear contact with bedsheets and pillows might similarly undo progress.

On the day of Mr Shahrokhey's surgery, staff began by shaving his head before using a black marker to sketch out where new hair grafts would go on his crown and along his hairline.

Next, in an upper-floor theatre, his scalp was injected with a local anaesthetic before a surgeon began the first stage of the procedure: extraction.

One by one, between 3,000 and 5,000 hair follicles were plucked from healthy areas at the back of his head and placed into Petri dishes ready to be implanted.

On a TV facing him across the room, a recorded message showed a man clad in white who warned against sudden movements during the surgery.

"If you have a stiff neck or just want to catch your breath, let the team know and we'll give you a small break," the man said in English through the screen.

Out in the waiting area, about half a dozen men sat idly on their phones or staring out the window, their heads wrapped in bandages from the morning.

"It's an odd experience," said Alex, who flew from London for the procedure. "It feels like I'm wearing a helmet. I can't really feel my head at all."

He then faced a recovery period of several weeks, when he wouldn't be able to shower or sleep flat on his back. If all went well, he'd see the full results of the treatment in about 18 months.

"Going out and about with friends, it was always the constant consciousness of the wind blowing and catching your hair and exposing the parts where you don't have any," he said.

Back in Mr Shahrokhey's room, three surgical staff huddled around his head, lifting plucked hair follicles from a tray and pushing them delicately into newly drilled holes on the crown.

Working in silence, their arms worked in practised rhythmic motions, making the process look simple to the untrained eye.

Hair is a lucrative business, but transplants aren't the only option

In a country with poor working conditions and low wages in the public healthcare system, private clinics targeting wealthy foreigners present for many an irresistible opportunity.

The industry's boom in Türkiye has given rise to illegal clinics that skirt regulations and operate with poorly trained staff, leading to procedures that can go catastrophically wrong.

Sometimes for foreign customers, it can be hard to tell on the face of it if a clinic is reputable or trustworthy.

A botched procedure by unlicensed staff – who often are not covered by malpractice insurance – can cause dangerous and irreversible health problems, according to the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery, a non-profit association based in Chicago.

Such problems, the association says, are not limited to Turkish clinics nor only to men, but are present in countries across the world.

Even at reputable clinics, transplants don't offer a perfect solution for everyone who experiences hair loss. 

Female pattern hair loss, which is the most common type of hair loss among women, differs from male pattern baldness.

Whereas men's hair loss is typically concentrated at the crown, women generally tend to experience thinning all over the head, which can make it more difficult to find suitable donor areas to transplant from. 

"I wouldn't recommend it to any female looking at a hair transplant as an option for hair loss," said Gina, a retired school teacher from the north-eastern United States who underwent the procedure after her hair began to thin in her early 20s.

Far less common, hair transplants for women are not widely marketed in the way they are to men, and present their own medical risks.

After researching a promising clinic, Gina claims she was not told by staff that the procedure, in which they grafted follicles from the back of her head onto a particularly thinned area on her crown, would not work in the way it did in men.

After some initial signs of new growth in the first six months after her surgery, her hair began to fall out again. She felt betrayed.

"I ended up kind of back at square one," she said. "For a lot of women, their hair is a big part of their identity. It's devastating. Why did it have to happen to me?"

Gina has since come to terms with her botched surgery in part by wearing a "hair topper" – a kind of supplemental wig that blends in with underlying hair – as well as by connecting to other women like her on Instagram.

"That may sound silly in the big scheme of things, but it's boosted my self-confidence exponentially."

• X (formerly Twitter)

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• Men's Health
• Travel and Tourism (Lifestyle and Leisure)

Passing Thru Travel

Top Destinations for Health and Medical Tourism in 2024

Posted: February 15, 2024 | Last updated: February 15, 2024

Health and medical tourism has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many people traveling abroad for high-quality medical treatments, wellness retreats, and alternative therapies. These destinations offer top-notch medical services and a chance to recuperate in a relaxing environment. This guide takes you through 15 global destinations renowned for their medical and wellness services.

Bangkok, Thailand

You’ll discover a world-renowned center for medical tourism in Bangkok where cutting-edge healthcare meets affordability and exceptional service. As you navigate the city, you’ll find state-of-the-art hospitals and clinics offering a wide range of medical treatments, from cosmetic surgery and dental care to comprehensive health check-ups. These facilities are known for their highly trained medical professionals, many of whom have international experience and qualifications.

The allure of Bangkok for medical tourism isn’t just in the cost savings but also in the opportunity to recuperate in a vibrant city known for its rich culture, delicious cuisine, and warm hospitality. Whether you’re exploring the bustling streets, relaxing in a luxurious hotel, or enjoying a tranquil recovery by the picturesque Chao Phraya River, Bangkok provides an ideal setting for both your medical and travel needs. You could even head to one of the southernmost islands, such as Koh Samui, for rest and recuperation.

Services: Cosmetic surgery, dental care, and wellness retreats.

Insider’s Tip: Many hospitals offer packages, including post-treatment recovery in luxury accommodations.

How To Get There: Fly into Suvarnabhumi Airport, served by many international airlines.

Budapest, Hungary

Budapest has carved a niche for itself in the world of medical tourism, particularly noted for its excellent dental care and historic thermal baths. Here, you’ll find top-notch dental clinics offering a range of services at prices significantly lower than in many Western countries without compromising on quality or expertise.

Beyond dental care, Budapest is famed for its thermal baths, sourced from natural hot springs, known for their therapeutic properties. These baths are not just about relaxation; they’re a traditional form of wellness deeply ingrained in the city’s culture. While benefiting from affordable, high-quality medical services, you also get to immerse yourself in the charm of a city that seamlessly blends its rich history with a vibrant contemporary lifestyle.

Wandering through Budapest’s grand architecture and along the Danube, you’ll experience this beautiful city’s unique blend of wellness and culture.

Services: Dental care and thermal baths for wellness.

Insider’s Tip: Schedule visits to thermal baths for natural healing.

How To Get There: Fly to Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport.

Seoul, South Korea

Seoul is a global leader in medical tourism, especially renowned for its advancements in cosmetic surgery and dermatology. As you explore Seoul, you’ll encounter state-of-the-art medical facilities that offer a wide array of cosmetic procedures, from innovative skincare treatments to high-precision plastic surgeries, all performed by highly skilled doctors. These clinics often combine the latest technology with a personalized approach, ensuring both top-quality results and a comfortable experience.

The city itself, a blend of modernity and tradition, provides an exciting backdrop for your medical journey. Whether you’re recovering in a luxury hotel or exploring vibrant neighborhoods like Gangnam, known for its high concentration of clinics, Seoul offers a unique experience where cutting-edge medical care meets rich cultural exploration. This fusion of high-tech healthcare and dynamic urban life makes Seoul a compelling destination for anyone seeking medical services in a cosmopolitan setting.

Services: Advanced plastic surgery and dermatological treatments.

Insider’s Tip: Explore Gangnam district, known for its high concentration of clinics.

How To Get There: Fly into Incheon International Airport.

Find a serene and lush paradise that has become a sought-after destination for medical tourism, known for its affordable yet high-quality medical services in Costa Rica. As you explore this Central American gem, you’ll discover a range of medical offerings, from dental procedures to cosmetic surgeries, all provided in state-of-the-art facilities by experienced healthcare professionals.

What sets Costa Rica apart is its ability to combine medical treatments with a chance to recuperate in a tranquil, natural setting. Imagine recovering amidst the backdrop of rainforests, pristine beaches, and rich biodiversity. This harmonious blend of top-tier medical care and a peaceful environment enhances your recovery and offers a unique opportunity to experience the pura vida lifestyle for which Costa Rica is renowned. Your journey to wellness in Costa Rica is complemented by warm hospitality and the chance to indulge in eco-friendly and wellness-oriented activities, making it a holistic health and travel experience.

Services: Dental work and cosmetic surgery in a natural, tranquil setting.

Insider’s Tip: Combine your medical trip with a stay near the beach or rainforest for relaxation.

How To Get There: Fly into Juan Santamaría International Airport.

Mumbai, India

In Mumbai, India, you’ll find yourself in a bustling metropolis that has emerged as a key destination for medical tourism, attracting patients worldwide with its combination of high-quality healthcare and affordability. The city’s medical facilities are equipped with advanced technology and staffed by skilled healthcare professionals, many of whom have trained internationally.

Mumbai specializes in a range of medical fields, including cardiac surgery, orthopedics, and transplants, offering services at a fraction of the cost compared to Western countries. Beyond the clinical aspect, Mumbai is a city steeped in culture and history, offering you a chance to experience the vibrant life of one of India’s most dynamic cities.

Whether you’re exploring the bustling markets, soaking in the diverse cultural heritage, or enjoying the local cuisine, Mumbai provides an enriching backdrop to your medical journey, blending world-class medical care with the warmth and vibrancy of Indian hospitality.

Services: High-quality cardiac surgery, orthopedics, and alternative medicine.

Insider’s Tip: Explore Ayurvedic retreats for holistic wellness.

How To Get There: Fly to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is at the crossroads of East and West, a city that has become a prominent hub for medical tourism, especially known for its hair transplantation and cosmetic dentistry expertise. As you navigate through Istanbul’s unique blend of historical grandeur and modern sophistication, you’ll find numerous clinics and hospitals offering high-quality medical services at competitive prices.

These facilities are often equipped with the latest technology and staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized care. Its rich cultural tapestry enhances Istanbul’s appeal as a medical tourism destination, with landmarks such as the Hagia Sophia and the Grand Bazaar. Here, you can seamlessly combine your medical journey with the experience of exploring one of the world’s most historically rich and diverse cities.

Whether you’re strolling along the Bosphorus or savoring Turkish cuisine, Istanbul offers a unique setting where a wealth of cultural and historical experiences complements advanced medical treatments.

Services: Hair transplantation and cosmetic dentistry.

Insider’s Tip: Post-treatment, enjoy recovery in a city steeped in history and culture.

How To Get There: Istanbul Airport or Sabiha Gökçen International Airport.

Sao Paulo, Brazil

In Sao Paulo, you’ll find yourself in a bustling city that’s increasingly becoming a hotspot for medical tourism, particularly known for its excellence in cosmetic and plastic surgery. As you navigate through Sao Paulo, the largest city in South America, you’ll discover a range of high-quality medical facilities that offer a variety of procedures, from minimally invasive treatments to more complex surgeries, all performed by skilled and experienced surgeons.

The city’s medical services are priced competitively, attracting patients from around the globe. Beyond the operating room, Sao Paulo is a vibrant metropolis brimming with cultural attractions, diverse cuisine, and dynamic nightlife. The opportunity to recover in such a lively urban environment adds an appealing dimension to your medical journey, combining top-tier medical care with the unique experience of exploring one of Brazil’s most dynamic cities.

Services: Cosmetic and plastic surgery.

Insider’s Tip: Brazil is known for its expertise in cosmetic procedures.

How To Get There: Fly into São Paulo–Guarulhos International Airport.

Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona beautifully marries cutting-edge medical facilities with the charm of a vibrant cultural hub, making it an increasingly popular destination for medical tourism. Known mainly for its advanced fertility treatments and cosmetic surgery, Barcelona’s medical centers boast state-of-the-art technology and highly skilled professionals, offering quality care at competitive prices.

As you embark on your medical journey in this city, you’re also treated to its rich architectural heritage, from Gaudi’s masterpieces to the Gothic Quarter’s winding streets. The city’s Mediterranean climate and inviting beaches provide a serene backdrop for recovery and relaxation. Whether you’re enjoying tapas on a sun-drenched terrace or strolling along the bustling Las Ramblas, Barcelona offers a holistic experience where an immersive cultural journey complements exceptional medical care.

Services: Advanced fertility treatments and cosmetic surgery.

Insider’s Tip: Take advantage of the city’s rich cultural and gastronomic scene during recovery.

How To Get There: Barcelona-El Prat Airport.

Tel Aviv, Israel

Tel Aviv is rapidly gaining recognition for its advanced medical treatments and state-of-the-art healthcare facilities. This vibrant coastal city offers a wide range of medical services, including cutting-edge cancer treatments and innovative medical technologies, attracting patients from across the globe. Tel Aviv’s medical institutions are known for their skilled professionals and personalized patient care, set within a competitive pricing framework.

Beyond healthcare, Tel Aviv is a lively, modern city known for its beautiful Mediterranean beaches, rich cultural scene, and bustling nightlife. The city’s warm climate and welcoming atmosphere provide an ideal environment for recovery and relaxation. As you walk along the beachfront promenade or explore the historic streets of Jaffa, Tel Aviv offers a unique blend of top-tier medical care and a lively urban experience, making it an attractive destination for medical tourists seeking both treatment and an enriching travel experience.

Services: Cutting-edge cancer treatments and medical technologies.

Insider’s Tip: Explore the Mediterranean coast for a relaxing recovery.

How To Get There: Ben Gurion Airport is the main international gateway.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur has established itself as a significant player in the field of medical tourism, offering an impressive array of healthcare services at highly competitive rates. The capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, is home to numerous internationally accredited hospitals and clinics that provide a wide range of medical procedures, from complex surgeries to wellness check-ups, all performed by qualified and experienced medical professionals.

These facilities are equipped with modern medical technology, ensuring high treatment standards. Kuala Lumpur’s appeal as a medical tourism destination is further enhanced by its rich cultural diversity, delicious cuisine, and a blend of modern and traditional lifestyles. The city’s excellent infrastructure and English-speaking medical staff make navigating your healthcare journey and the city itself a smooth and comfortable experience.

Whether exploring the iconic Petronas Twin Towers or indulging in the local food scene, Kuala Lumpur offers a unique setting where quality healthcare meets cultural richness.

Services: Affordable and quality healthcare covering various specialties.

Insider’s Tip: Malaysia’s healthcare system is ranked among the best in the world.

How To Get There: Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Singapore is a city-state known for its efficiency and modernity; you’ll discover a premier destination for medical tourism, renowned for its exceptional healthcare system. This bustling metropolis boasts state-of-the-art medical facilities that are among the best in the world, staffed with highly trained medical professionals who provide a wide range of specialized treatments and procedures.

Singapore’s hospitals are known for their high standards of patient care and cutting-edge medical technology, offering services from complex surgeries to preventive medicine. The city, known for its cleanliness and order, provides a comfortable and stress-free environment for your medical journey. As you navigate this cosmopolitan city, you can also enjoy its diverse cultural tapestry, lush green spaces, and a culinary scene that’s a melting pot of Asian cuisines.

In Singapore, your pursuit of health and wellness is complemented by the experience of a city that seamlessly blends traditional charm with a forward-thinking approach.

Services: State-of-the-art medical technology and facilities.

Insider’s Tip: Post-treatment, enjoy the city’s clean and organized environment.

How To Get There: Singapore Changi Airport.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Dubai is a luxurious and futuristic city that has rapidly emerged as a key destination for medical tourism. Known for its lavish lifestyle and architectural wonders, Dubai also boasts world-class medical facilities offering a range of high-end medical and wellness services. These facilities are equipped with the latest technology and staffed by top-notch medical professionals, catering to a variety of health needs, from elective surgeries to wellness retreats.

The city’s emphasis on luxury and comfort extends to its healthcare services, ensuring a premium experience for medical tourists. As you explore Dubai, you can indulge in its opulent shopping malls, stunning skyscrapers like the Burj Khalifa, and relaxing beach resorts, which make the perfect backdrop for a recuperative stay. Dubai’s blend of advanced healthcare, luxury, and a unique desert landscape offers a distinctive and indulgent medical tourism experience.

Services: Luxury medical treatments and wellness retreats.

Insider’s Tip: Experience high-end recovery facilities in this modern metropolis.

How To Get There: Dubai International Airport.

Los Angeles, USA

In Los Angeles, you’ll immerse yourself in a city that’s not just the epicenter of entertainment but also a growing hub for medical tourism. Known for its advanced medical treatments, particularly in specialties like oncology and cardiology, Los Angeles hosts a range of top-tier hospitals and clinics. These facilities are renowned for their cutting-edge technology and expert medical staff, ensuring you receive high-quality care.

The city’s diverse and wellness-focused culture complements your medical journey, offering numerous options for healthy living and recovery. As you navigate the sprawling metropolis, you can indulge in its unique blend of urban excitement and natural beauty, from the Hollywood hills to the serene Pacific coastline. Los Angeles provides an ideal backdrop for those seeking world-class medical treatment while enjoying Southern California’s vibrant lifestyle and scenic diversity.

Services: Advanced medical treatments, especially in oncology and cardiology.

Insider’s Tip: The city’s wellness culture is ideal for recuperation.

How To Get There: Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Tijuana, Mexico

Tijuana, just across the border from San Diego, you’ll discover a city that has become a go-to destination for medical tourism, especially known for its affordable dental care and bariatric surgery. This bustling border town offers quality medical services at a fraction of the cost typically found in the United States, drawing patients from all over North America. Tijuana’s medical facilities are modern and well-equipped, staffed by experienced and often bilingual healthcare professionals.

The city’s proximity to the United States adds to its appeal, providing easy accessibility for those seeking efficient and cost-effective medical treatments. Beyond its healthcare offerings, Tijuana boasts a vibrant culture, with lively markets, authentic Mexican cuisine, and a warm, welcoming atmosphere. In Tijuana, you can experience the benefits of affordable medical care while enjoying the rich cultural experiences that this unique border city has to offer.

Services: Affordable dental care and bariatric surgery.

Insider’s Tip: It is a popular destination for Americans due to its proximity and lower costs.

How To Get There: General Abelardo L. Rodríguez International Airport or cross the border from San Diego.

Vienna, Austria

Vienna is renowned for its classical music, stunning architecture, and, increasingly, for its high-quality preventive medicine and diagnostics. This elegant capital offers a range of sophisticated healthcare services, focusing on preventive care that emphasizes early detection and holistic treatment approaches.

Vienna’s medical facilities are world-class, featuring state-of-the-art technology and staffed by highly trained medical professionals. The city’s healthcare system is recognized for its efficiency and patient-centric approach, ensuring a comfortable and reassuring experience.

Beyond its medical offerings, Vienna is enchanted with its imperial history, vibrant cultural scene, and cozy coffee houses, making it an ideal destination for those seeking top-tier medical services in a serene and culturally rich setting. In Vienna, the pursuit of health is complemented by the opportunity to immerse oneself in a city steeped in history and renowned for its contributions to art and science.

Services: High-quality preventive medicine and diagnostics.

Insider’s Tip: Enjoy the city’s classical music scene and historical ambiance during your stay.

How To Get There: Vienna International Airport.

The Bottom Line

Traveling for health and medical treatments combines the necessity of healthcare with the pleasure of experiencing new cultures and environments. Each of these destinations offers unique medical specialties.

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The post Top Destinations for Health and Medical Tourism in 2024 republished on Passing Thru with permission from The Green Voyage .

Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / ArtFamily.

For transparency, this content was partly developed with AI assistance and carefully curated by an experienced editor to be informative and ensure accuracy.

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