Medical tourism industry has experienced an exponential growth in recent years. It still continues to grow, with many considering it to offer a win-win situation for developing countries, and medical tourists who need access to quality healthcare services at affordable costs and in a timely manner.
Issues inhibiting the growth of medical tourism
Despite this substantial growth, the medical tourism industry is plagued by several issues which hinder its progress in developing countries. Some of the more burning issues that need to b addressed promptly include:
Ignorance of medical tourism facilitators and agencies
In many destinations, medical tourism is considered as a specialty sector that can be handled only by experienced individuals while traditional travel agents and facilitators show little or no interest in the same.
International growth vs. domestic growth
Another common complaint that has placed many medical tourism destinations under the scanner is the way international growth of the medical sector in these regions tends to stump domestic growth in the same region.
Expectations vs. reality
Many medical tourism destinations fail to deliver according to the expectations they initially set. This can be attributed to the fact that little is done to understand the client’s needs and preferences beforehand. Not much is known about what these clients think about their medical tourism experience as well. Without this information, it would be hard for a medical tourism destination to match expectations with reality.
Measures to push the success of medical tourism in a destination
A medical tourism destination would need to take these factors into account when pushing for their success as a potential destination for medical tourists.
The need to be a global player
Changing preferences and perceptions would require a medical tourism destination to think and act like a global player in order to attract more international clients to its shores. Hence, understanding the perspectives and motivations of international clients, patients, partners and customers is essential for the success of medical tourism in a specific destination.
The need to exceed expectations continually
In this age of scams and corruptions, trust in a medical tourism destination would be short lived and would depend on how expectations are met on a constant basis. Rising demands have also given rise to more expectations, with an exceptional track record considered a must for a medical tourism destination to thrive.
The need to continuously learn and grow
A medical tourism destination would need to continuously update its knowledge base and use the same to move higher in the ranks with time. Continuous learning and adaptation is considered essential to move ahead in this competitive world. Learning how the different areas off the medical tourism industry work together to achieve a common purpose would also help foster the growth of the industry as a whole in the long run.
Medical tourism has been experiencing a substantial growth in the last few years. However, it still faces a few issues which would need to be handled in order to continue growing and spreading its reach to developing countries around the world.
