Health Tourism in India

Health tourism offers best in class care under the guidance of skilled surgeons, doctors, and support staff at reasonable cost. This requires the patient to travel to a foreign destination in order to receive such treatments. Health tourism is an ancient concept, and its popularity in India is growing every year.

With significant advancement in this field, health & wellness tourism in India has been increasing by leaps and bounds. India is among the Top 3 medical tourism destinations in the world and is one of the most lucrative options for patients across the globe.

Health Tourism in India has witnessed substantial progress in the last couple of decades. With increasing costs of medical treatment in developed world, especially United States and long waiting time in UK and Australia, more and more patients from the western world are finding the Indian proposition quite attractive.

India is the world’s largest democratic and secular country. India got independence from British rule on August 15, 1947.The population of India is second largest in the world, next only to China. It lands size is seventh largest in the world.

India is 3rd largest economy in terms of PPP and 10th largest in terms of nominal GDP. India is one of the major economies of South-east Asia. India has 29 states and 7 union territories.

The capital city of India is New Delhi. Mumbai in Maharashtra is famous as the financial capital of India. India has rich cultural heritage of more than 3000 years.

The major festivals in India are Holi, Diwali, Durga Puja, Saraswati Puja, Mahavir Jayanti, Eid, Muharram, Christmas, and the major religions practiced in India are Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Jainism, etc. India is a secular country and no religion is considered superior over the other. The most spoken language in India is Hindi. English is the second most spoken language in India.

The largest mountain ranges in India are the Himalayan Mountain Ranges while the longest river is Ganges. It is surrounded by Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal in the south, south-west and south-east respectively.

Healthcare in India has been carrying a legacy for thousands of years. Long before the British colonized the country, cataract, caesarean section, plastic surgery, and even brain surgery was performed. More than 2500 years ago, Sushruta - the father of Indian surgery used over 100 instruments to perform complex operations.

Today, Indian doctors offer all kinds of surgeries. With growing availability of medical infrastructure and procedures, India comes across as a lucrative confluence of western medicine and expert professionals at an extremely reasonable cost.

Prominent Indian private hospitals are making their presence felt in this arena by bringing the best in class international equipment and technical know-how and building world class healthcare facilities in India. This has propagated a substantial rise in the quality of healthcare services and facilities in India. The super specialty hospitals guided by internationally acclaimed doctors and professional administrative staff is where the strength of the Indian healthcare industry lies. The healthcare industry is updating itself constantly by becoming extremely dynamic and innovative.

Over the ages, India has been known to offer excellent hospitality and unforgettable vacations to tourists from the world over. Along with this, state of art Healthcare facilities in India have propelled to be one of the top destinations for healthcare tourism globally.

Cutting edge technology, skilled practitioners, a rapidly progressing pharmaceutical industry, and the rich cultural heritage make India one of the leading health tourism destinations. A testimony to the county's excellence in medicine and hospitality is the millions of tourists that visit India each year for consultations, treatments, and rejuvenation.

India has been gradually moving forward to become the top destination in the field of healthcare tourism. The recent developments confirm that robot-assisted surgery was conducted for the first time in India. The Clinical Research Facility (CRF) for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine has also seen several breakthroughs. A lot progress is happening in the field of medicine and medical technology and the Indian doctors, scientists and medical institutions are geared up to embrace the new.

To ensure that the high standards are maintained, the National Accreditation Board for hospitals develops, maintains, reviews, and enforces the standards to be maintained for hospitals and medical care centers. Many hospitals in India are accredited by JCI which is the international arm of JCHAO, the agency that accredits the health care facilities in the United States. A JCI accredited facility stands to be at par with the facilities in the United States.

Several experienced Indian surgeons and doctors trained and having practiced in USA, UK, and Europe for many years have chosen India to set up their own specialized hospitals or offer consultation and surgery through other private hospitals in India.

Cardiac surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Dental Care, Cosmetic surgery, Organ transplant are just few of the many medical treatments in India that medical tourists opt for. India is the hub for Alternative Medicine, with therapies like Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Homeopathy, Meditation etc., This puts India in a different pedestal and provides a significant advantage over other healthcare tourism destinations.

India enjoys an undisputed advantage in terms of quantity and quality of skilled and techno friendly work force, which other countries can only try to emulate.

According to recent statistics, medical tourism in India is expected to touch $10 billion in 2020. Thanks to the rapid advancements in communication and data sharing technologies, sectors like medicine, IT/ ITES and BPOs have enjoyed the fruits of outsourcing and off shoring form the western world.

India's excellent talent pool is regularly fortified with skilled work force from over 100 universities housing more than ten thousand colleges offering professional education. This army of trained candidates allows India to offer the most advanced services at competitive costs across the board.

The government has been providing aids and scholarships, to boost medical education in the country. Several students and aspiring doctors get trained under some of the finest surgeons from USA, UK, and Europe.

With around 9,50,000 expert practitioners, 4,000 hospitals and thousands of wellness centres across the country, India has one of the most abundant skilled manpower and medical infrastructure to be a preferred destination for medical tourism.

Rising domestic demand has promoted the development of excellent medical infrastructure by the private hospitals in India, thereby introducing newer technologies and services at competitive prices.

In spite of lower overheads, patients can expect facilities and medical care at par with best hospitals in the world. Thousands of successful treatments and surgeries every year are a testimony to the effectiveness of Indian medical services, all this while costing a fraction of the amount as compared to the West.

Medical tourism in India is highly recommended due to its major benefit, which is "Absolutely No Waiting Period". Quick turnaround time is a facet only India can boast of. Some countries have an over-stretched medical system requiring patients to await treatments, sometimes even in case of urgent surgeries and operations.

Timely, safe, effective, and quick medical attention by the top most surgeons and doctors is a feature only the Indian medical services can make available.

English being the second most spoken language in the country, it is much easier for people from the West to communicate here rather than in a country where the help of interpreters is required. All doctors and support staff at hospitals in India are fluent in English thus making communication easy.

The cost of medical treatment in India is a fraction of the cost of treatment in Western countries, which is the main attraction for Indian medical tourism. For instance, the cost of heart bypass surgery in India is US $ 6,500 whereas the same surgery costs $ 75,000 in US and 25,000 pounds at a private hospital in UK.

Here's an estimated comparison of Cost of Medical Treatment in India vs USA and UK.

Medical Treatment	INDIA (USD)	USA (USD)	UK (GBP)
CABG	$6,500	$75,000	£25,000
Angioplasty with 1 Medicated Stent	$5,000	$50,000	£18,000
Valve Replacement	$8,500	$95,000	£35,000
Knee replacement - Single	$5,000	$50,000	£10,000
Knee replacement - Double	$9,000	$95,000	£20,000
Hip Replacement - Single	$6,000	$60,000	£14,000
Hip Replacement - Double	$10,500	$95,000	£25,000
Laparoscopic Gastric Banding	$6,000	$20,000	£20,000
Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass	$6,000	$30,000	£12,000
Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy	$5,000	$25,000	£25,000
Blepharoplasty (Eyelids) Upper & Lower(Bilateral)	$2,000	$8,000	£3,000
Breast Augmentation (Includes implants)	$3,500	$8,000	£4,500
Breast Reduction	$3,000	$7,500	£5,000
Face lift	$3,200	$7,000	£5,000
Cosmetic Rhinoplasty	$2,200	$7,000	£4,000
Tummy Tuck	$3,000	$10,000	£5,000
Liposuction (one area)	$1,750	$7,500	£3,000
Bone marrow Transplant	$35,000	$250,000	£100,000
Liver Transplant	$40,000	$300,000	£130,000
Kidney Transplant	$15,000	$200,000	£90,000
Root Canal	$40/tooth	$800	£200/tooth
Ceramic Crown (Metal Fused)	$200/tooth	$850	£600/tooth
Dental Extraction	$15/tooth	$300	£75/tooth
Veneers	$200/tooth	$800	£400/tooth
Dental Implant	$400/Implant	$3,500	£2,000/Implant
Teeth Whitening	$110	$750	£700
Neurosurgery	$ —	$ —	£ —
Brain Tumour Surgery	$8,000	$30,000	£25,000
Gamma Knife Surgery	$7,000	$20,000	£17,000
Complex Spine Surgery with Implants	$6,500	$50,000	£30,000
Spinal Decompression Fusion	$7,000	$60,000	£25,000

( * These rates are indicative of approximate costs. The actual rates will vary on case to case basis. )

India has been a popular destination for people seeking serenity and spiritual growth. Ayurveda, Yoga, Meditation are few of the things that India has introduced to the world and people continue to visit this country for an incredible experience in this field.

Whether they are wellness retreats in Himalayas or Ayurveda centers in backwaters of Kerala, India offers unique value to the tourists seeking tranquility and rejuvenation of their mind, body and souls. Wellness is not limited to therapies, it is the science and art of holistically healing the body and mind.

ATITHI DEVO BHAVA... A guest in India is treated as God. Indians are well known over the world for their warmth and hospitality, and hence, was always one of the most sought after tourist destinations. With over 9 million foreign tourists and over 250,000 medical tourists visiting the country in 2015, India is headed to be among the top tourist destinations in the world.

India has much to offer to her visitors. Located in southern Asia, India houses the legendary monument of love, the Taj Mahal. However, !incredible India does not end with this wonder of the world; centuries of history take you on a mystical journey in the land of colors. From the Portuguese churches in Goa, to the traditional Rajputana carvings in Rajasthan; from the majestic Golden temple in the north, to the pristine Kerala backwaters in the south, every state holds a distinct flavor in its architecture, cuisines and lifestyles.

Besides rich cultural heritage and scenic locations, India also offers luxury travel and stay to her travelers and tourists. Cruise from the picturesque natural sites to the architectural wealth in this beautiful land, almost all the cities in India have something to interest the tourists.