Thai hospitals take professionalism in medical tourism to another level
Jul 26, 06 | 12:56 pm By Satish G. | eTN Asia
Keen on sustaining the segment of tourists, which comes to Thailand especially for medical tourism, two hospitals in Bangkok have set up in-house visa extension facilities to help those who have to overstay their visas while undergoing medical treatment. The facility gives a substantial boost to Thailand’s competitive position as it seeks to attract more global visitors to its world-class medical facilities, acknowledge the tourism authorities. It is being clearly notified that in both cases, the Bumrungrad and Samitivej hospitals are bearing the expenses of providing the space and having Immigration officials come in once a week to process the paperwork. Having the facility in-house is far more convenient for them than having staff shuttle with the paperwork back and forth from the Immigration Division head office in Bangkok on a daily basis.
“Thailand’s health, wellness and medical facilities are becoming increasingly popular all over the world. Thus far, people seeking to avail of these facilities have had to first see which type of visa they are holding, and the duration of stay permitted,” according to a statement. The tourism authorities share that visitors come to Thailand on many different types of visas. Citizens of 41 countries and territories get 30-day visa free stay, 20 nationalities get 15-day visas on arrival while the rest have to apply for visas beforehand. The different types of visas have various terms and conditions related to extension of stay. Some are extendable and others not. While many people come to Thailand under a 90-day “tourist visa” specifically for treatment, others are taking advantage of their presence in Thailand under a 15-day visa-on-arrival to get a check-up and any accompanying treatment, if necessary. Either way, many find that an extension of stay is required. The Immigration Department acknowledges that patients who seek bonafide treatment should be given an extension so as not to incur an over-stay fine upon departure, according to the authorities. Extensions are now being granted for periods of one month to 90 days, depending on which type of visa the patient is holding. A doctor’s certificate is required (organised by the hospital) along with original passport, a photocopy of the passport and one photograph. An Immigration Department form also has to be filled out, which is normally handled by the hospital. A charge of 1,900 baht is levied by the Immigration Department and the hospital may add a service charge. The extension is normally granted immediately.
Source :
travelvideo.tv
Boost for medical tourism in Thailand
Bangkok, Thailand :
10 March 2006 01:00
Thailand's top private hospital, the Bumrungrad International Hospital, and a leading Asian travel agency said on Friday they had forged a tie-up to boost medical tourism in the kingdom.
Bumrungrad, one of the most popular medical tourism destinations in Asia, attracts more than 400 000 foreign patients each year. Under the pact with Diethelm Travel Asia, a leading Asian tour operator, Bumrungrad patients can enjoy tours in the kingdom. Medical tourism is popular in Thailand, as Bumrungrad has already tied up with flag carrier Thai Airways International to offer foreign patients package tours combining medical treatment with sightseeing. Tourism accounts for 6% of Thailand's gross domestic product and the government forecast some 13,6-million foreign tourists would visit the kingdom in 2006. – AFP
Source :
www.mg.co.za
Vacation, Adventure And Surgery?
04 september 2005
This summer, millions headed out to foreign lands for vacation, adventure, tourism, or just a beautiful beach.
But how about hip surgery or a multiple bypass or a facelift?
A growing number of tourists are doing just that, combining holidays with health care, and that's because a growing number of countries are offering first-rate medical care at Third-World prices. Many of these medical tourists can't afford health care at home (the 40 million uninsured Americans, for example). Others are going for procedures not covered by their insurance: cosmetic surgery or infertility treatment, for example.
And as
Correspondent Bob Simon reported last spring, the hospitals in these faraway countries are glad to have these medical tourists. In fact, they are courting their business, trying to get more people to outsource their own health care.
Thailand is an exotic vacation spot known for its Buddhas, its beaches, its brothels, and the bustle of Bangkok.
But for people needing medical care, it’s known increasingly for
Bumrungrad Hospital, a luxurious place that claims to have more foreign patients than any other hospital in the world. It’s like a United Nations of patients here, and they’re cared for by more than 500 doctors, most with international training.
The hospital has state-of-the-art technology, and here’s the clincher: the price. Treatment here costs about one-eighth what it does in the United States. It's the No. 1 international hospital in the world.
"It’s sort of Ground Zero. I haven’t heard anybody yet who’s told us that they take more than 350,000 international patients a year," says Curt Schroeder, CEO of Bumrungrad.
One patient is Byron Bonnewell, who lives 12,000 miles away in Shreveport, La., where he owns and runs a campground for RVs. A year-and-a-half ago, he had a heart attack, and his doctor told him he really needed bypass surgery.
"They told me I was gonna die," says Bonnewell, who didn't have insurance.
He estimates he would have had to pay over $100,000 out of his own pocket for the operation he needed, a complicated quintuple bypass. And he says he actually decided not to do it:
"I guess I figured I'd rather die with a little bit of money in my pocket than live poor."
But Bonnewell says his health was deteriorating quickly, when he read about Bumrungrad Hospital:
"I was in my doctor's office one day having some tests done, and there was a copy of Business Week magazine there. And there was an article in Business Week magazine about Bumrungrad Hospital. And I came home and went on the Internet and made an appointment, and away I went to Thailand."
He made that appointment after he learned that the bypass would cost him about $12,000. He chose his cardiologist, Dr. Chad Wanishawad, after reading on the hospital’s Web site that he used to practice at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland.
"Every doctor that I saw there has practiced in the United States," says Bonnewell.
But three days after walking into the hospital, he was on the operating table. Two weeks later, he was home.
How does he feel?
"Wonderful. I wish I’d found them sooner," says Bonnewell. "Because I went through a year – I was in bad shape. I couldn’t walk across the room."
How was the nursing? How was the treatment?
"I found it so strange in Thailand, because they were all registered nurses. Being in a hospital in the United States, we see all kinds of orderlies, all kinds of aides, maybe one RN on duty on the whole floor of the hospital,"s the treatment? says Bonnewell.
"In Thailand, I bet I had eight RNs just on my section of the floor alone. First-class care."
That’s what the hospital prides itself on: its first-class medical care, which it can offer so cheaply because everything is cheaper here, particularly labor and malpractice insurance. You can get just about any kind of treatment, from chemotherapy to plastic surgery.
Source :
www.cbsnews.com 
