Medical Tourism – Stake holder Analysis May 31, 2010

In Medical Tourism business its very important to do a stake holder analysis and a proper weightage allocation.Having reviewed hundreds of medical tourism sites and scrutinizing their working style, very few are really successful but , hardly anyone is there who has established an exclusive framework for medical tourism business. The various components of the framework are

- Patients
-Healthcare Service providers ( Hospitals , Doctors ,Clinics)
- Medical Tourism Facilitators
- Travel agents
- Accommodation facilities
- Insurance companies ( subjected to conditions )
- Employers ( Subjected to conditions )

Now it is very important to establish a complete framework and not leaving any gap. Within each framework component there are several sub-specific components.

All of them have to be taken care of.

Medical Tourism venture (Ready to start ?) May 30, 2010

Looking forward to plunge in to the medical tourism business ? do a very good analysis of market for opportunities available,Consider your strengths, realize your weakness—-> ( find remedies ), Gauge the competition , tighten your belt, seek professional help for preparation of a good business model. do not hesitate to spend on the foundation laying activity, Hire good professionals for carrying out the operational activity , Select hospitals which can fit into a sustainable business model of yours and your vision matches with their goals, establish proper channels and you will see your medical tourism business is taking off.

Medical tourism – A reality ?? May 13, 2010

Half a decade back there was a big publicity about medical tourism and sky scrapping numbers showing the amount of money being sourced to countries having affordable healthcare in form of medical tourism and associated travel and other supportive care costs .Many entrepreneurs plunged in to the market speculating higher returns on negligible investments . but have they achieved what they have been looking for in these years. If yes which countries have achieved that which are the countries which are lagging behind in spite of having all the resources of becoming a popular destination ?

Lets discuss India. Medical tourism business in India is as diverse as a it could be in th world. Lets consider the following points.

- No regulatory hurdle for medical tourism
- anyone can plunge in the business
- Hospitals have their own international divisions to promote themselves along with tied up with thousand other existing or non existing agencies
- Most of the players in the market are not armed with healthcare experience and bank upon the hospitals or physicians to supplement in patient counselling
- This is a market where nobody knows about the the statistics or the broader picture
- No retrospective analysis

along with all these there are other problems of infrastructural insufficiency, distance form the primary target countries, and many more. Can these problems be solved ? Yes , in next blog we shall discuss in detail how we can develop a strategic approach to all these problems.

How to choose an agency for medical travel May 10, 2010

When travelling to an alien country there is always an apprehensive mind about the culture of the country , the cost effectiveness , the expertise of the agency and several other factors. There are few steps you must ensure safety.

- Do a good comparison of quotes but do no bargain excessively, services which you might get at a very cheap rate might not be a qualitative

- Speak to the medical tourism facilitator and ask for a pre-travel talk with the physician

- Do a good research about the agency online

- Ask for the physical address of the agency’s office

- Ask the agency to establish link through your country’s embassy or high commission if you feel something is suspicious.

- use channel partners for hotel and airline booking rather than depending on the agency to book an air ticket.

medical tourism is a very good option for keeping healthcare costs low and better outcomes.

Medical Tourism Consultancy May 4, 2010

Since I started communicating with Medical Tourism Facilitators starting from the year 2007, I was often asked few questions very frequently which I want to discuss today.

- Is Medical Tourism Industry this big as hyped ?
- Is it really a fast growing industry ?
- Is it a good business option?
- Which are the most popular destinations for medical tourism ?
- Which are the countries that send maximum number of medical tourists ?
- Can our country become a popular medical tour ?
- What is the statistics of patients travelling for healthcare service ?
- Is this medical tourism business regulated ?
- Do we need a license to start this business ?
- How much capital investment is needed for medical tourism business ?
- How soon could we achieve a break even period ?
- How is revenue channelised in medical tourism ?
- Do the patient pay the medical tourism facilitators or the hospitals pay ?
- Is there any legal implication ?
- Which are the most popular procedures for which medical tourist travels ?