According to report founded In India, a large number of patients come from the middle east, Africa, and Bangladesh. The medical tourism board believes that India holds advantage as most doctors and surgeons at Indian hospitals are trained or have worked in the U.S., Europe, or other developed nations; most doctors and nurses are fluent in English; state-of-art medical and diagnostic equipment are available at many hospitals; Indian nursing staff are considered very good; and even the most budget-conscious travellers can afford first-rate services and luxury amenities.
India six major airports will have facilitation centers soon for international patients coming in for treatment. Envisioned by the Ministry of Tourism, the first center will come up at the Mumbai airport in October. The idea is to have a help desk for patients and their relatives before they are approached by touts.
Ministry of Tourism has sought help from the Indian Medical Association (IMA) and the Consortium of Accredited Healthcare Organisations. “Mumbai will be a pilot project. Depending on how it works out, centers will come up in Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad,” said Dr. K.K. Aggarwal, president of the IMA and member of the ministry’s medical tourism board.
“The centers will have trained personnel who will guide patients and their relatives if they have already short-listed a hospital and will provide information about accredited hospitals in case they are yet to short-list one,” said Dr. Aggarwal.
Medical tourism is used to describe the practice of traveling to another country for healthcare services.
The ministry also plans to have a telephone link at the counter to the Incredible India info helpline for assistance while dealing with persons in need of language services. “Many patients land in the country and then go on visiting two to three hospitals before finalising one. For such patients, the centre will act as a bridge of information. For others who short-list the hospitals from their home country, we will be able to ease out things by providing information about their arrival to the centre and offer guidance on travel, cell phone connections,” said Dr. Parag Rindani , centre head of Wockhardt Hospital, Mumbai Central.
