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Plan for continuity of care while you are still at the treating facility

Always keep in mind that while you are in your medical tourism destination, you should receive all necessary information and instructions of what you need after you reach home. This information will help you arrange for proper continuity of care procedures after return.

Plan for continuity of care while you are still at the treating facility

  1. Collection of post-operative instructions

  2. Availability of medication prescribed by the doctor

  3. Gather medical documents, legal papers and bills

  4. Traveling certificates, if required

Collection of post-operative instructions

post-operative instructions

During the time when you are in direct contact with your treating physician or doctor, make notes and write down important suggestions.

This will include the necessary post-operative instructions, details about the medication you require, things or activities you should avoid, and the right time to get back to your normal routine.

Do not hesitate in asking questions. If you are still drowsy or not in the best condition to understand the intricacies, your companion should take the required notes. If you do not have a companion with you, you can also request the physician to provide you with written notes that are clear enough for you to understand.

Availability of medication prescribed by the doctor

Availability of medication

One of the most important aspects of post-operative recovery is the medication that your treating physician has prescribed to you. For quick recovery, you (or your companion), have to ensure that you take the prescribed medicines at the scheduled time and do not miss on any dosage. While in your destination country, you will be easily able to buy your prescription drugs by showing the prescription letter given to you by your doctor.

Make sure that the same drugs will be available in your home country, if you have to remain on prescription for a longer period. Although certain medicines are prevalent in a particular region, the same drugs might be considered contraband in your home country. It is important to ask your physician or the pharmacist whether the medication, which you have been prescribed, is legal to be carried back home.

If the medication is legal in your country too, you can easily stock it up as it might be cheaper in your destination than in your home country. However, if the drugs are considered contraband in your home country, you will have to arrange a recommendation letter from your doctor that claims the importance of the drug for your case. You should get in touch with your local doctor who will be performing the necessary continuity of care procedures after your return. Try to get the name of an alternative drug for the same use, which you can legally purchase in your country.

Gather medical documents, legal papers and bills

medical documents

Before you start your journey back home, it is important to remember that all the documents you have received during your treatment are of vital importance and hence they should not be thrown in the bin of the hotel you are living in, but should be packed carefully. The documents might include your medical reports, notes and recommendations of the physician who treated you, lab test results and imaging reports. These will be important for the continuity of care procedures. Non-medical documents such as bills will be required for claim processing and tax deductions. In addition, the informed consent and other legal documents are something you should hold on to, in case a legal recourse is needed.

Traveling certificates, if required

tickets

While you are traveling as a patient, you need special care from the airline staff, both prior to the treatment and afterwards. Many airlines have guidelines pertaining to such travelers, and they will only be in a position to help you and provide you with the required comfort after they check documents that prove your medical condition and get abreast of your requirements.

Sometimes, a patient might require a wheelchair to board a plane or possibly even require emergency services, in the case of a complicated condition. If you provide your traveling certificate, which carries important information about your medical condition and your care requirements, the airline staff will ensure that they provide all necessary services to you.

These services might include a roomier seat, food according to your doctor’s recommendations and additional monitoring by the airline staff. Without the traveling certificates, airline staff cannot be held responsible for not making special provisions for you during your travel. Airline staff members work under set guidelines and these guidelines ask all patients to produce certificates which prove the medical condition.

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