Times
of India,
By Shabnam Minwalla
A few months ago, Dr Niteen Dehia of Laser Eye
Vision received an unusual request. A busload of Britishers,
who were planning a trip to Goa, wanted to stop over in
Mumbai to correct their vision through Lasik surgery.
The doctor was happy to oblige, and is now preparing
for the 15 bespectacled tourists who will be arriving
in December.
When Dr. Aniruddha Malpani decided to invest Rs 25
lakhs in equipment for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis
- a technique used to rule out genetic disorders in
the embryo- he knew that "only the rich and desperate"
in India would come forward. But he suspected that international
patients might be interested.
The hunch paid off. Half the inquiries that Dr Malpani
has fielded in this connection have come from abroad.
And in January, he will be undertaking the highly specialised
procedure for an American couple.
Recently, a surprised Dr. Kanir Bhatia found himself
scheduling appointments around flight timings and tourist
itineraries.
An American who was coming to India to see the Taj,
had decided to undergo a complicated dental procedure
as well.
If these cases are any indication, more and more visitors
are arriving in India for reasons which have as much
to do with stethoscopes as sight-seeing. For, given
the fact that top-of-the-line medical treatment is available
in Mumbai for a fraction of the Manchester or Muscat
rate, international patients have actually begun to
contemplate facelift-cum-Fatehpur Sikri trips to India.
"Even if you include the price of the ticket and
some sight-seeing, dental work like teeth implants and
smile design work out cheaper here," says Dr Bhatia,
a cosmetic dentist and implantologist. Concurs Dr Vijay
Sharma, a cosmetic surgeon with a steady international
clientele, "The entire country is focused on the
IT revolution. But if we play our cards right, healthcare
could well be the next boom."
To say that 'medical tourism' is already a trend may
be overstating maters somewhat. But there is an undeniable
trickle of international patients, especially in areas
like cosmetic surgery, cosmetic dentistry, infertility
treatment and eye surgery.
These branches are often denied insurance in countries
like the U.S. and Canada, or are considered extremely
low priority by national healthcare systems in countries
like the UK.
Related News: 'Skilled manpower, low cost of treatment
attract foreigners'
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