Global Trends in Health and Medical Tourism

Medical tourism is the act of travelling to other countries to obtain medical, dental, preventive and surgical care. With high rising costs of health care, many people are not able to afford health insurance and cannot receive treatment for necessary or elective procedures. Travelling abroad costs 60 to 80 percent less than the same procedure in the US and includes the leisurely aspect of travelling in the foreign country. This book provides readers with an introductory overview of health and medical tourism, besides dental tourism. Identification of related destinations, the involved risks and rewards with respect to medical travel is discussed in detail. An attempt is made towards understanding medical tourism in all its dimensions. The book also gives some reflections on growth of medical tourism worldwide with an Indian perspective on future prospects of global medical tourism. The existing industry of medical tourism in North America, the health facilities and alternative healthcare in Barbados are described as case studies.