Escape Artist
  • Features
    • Interviews
    • News
    • Field Notes
    • Trending
  • Your Escape Plan
    • Finance
    • Real Estate
    • Second Citizenship
    • Digital Nomadism
  • Destinations
    • Europe
      • Spain
      • Portugal
      • Italy
      • France
      • UK
      • Rest of Europe
    • Central America
      • Panama
      • Costa Rica
      • Nicaragua
      • Honduras
      • Belize
      • El Salvador
      • Guatemala
    • Others
      • North America
      • South America
      • Australia
      • Africa
      • Asia
  • Travel Tips
    • Know Before You Go
    • Packing List
    • Food + Culture
    • Health + Wellness
  • Subscribe
Escape Artist
  • Features
    • Interviews
    • News
    • Field Notes
    • Trending
  • Your Escape Plan
    • Finance
    • Real Estate
    • Second Citizenship
    • Digital Nomadism
  • Destinations
    • Europe
      • Spain
      • Portugal
      • Italy
      • France
      • UK
      • Rest of Europe
    • Central America
      • Panama
      • Costa Rica
      • Nicaragua
      • Honduras
      • Belize
      • El Salvador
      • Guatemala
    • Others
      • North America
      • South America
      • Australia
      • Africa
      • Asia
  • Travel Tips
    • Know Before You Go
    • Packing List
    • Food + Culture
    • Health + Wellness
  • Subscribe
👤

LIFE WITHOUT BOUNDARIES

THE NUMBER ONE SOURCE FOR EXPATS, DIGITAL NOMADS, AND DREAMERS.

  • Health + Wellness

No Kidding: Overseas Medical Tourism is Well Worth the Trip

  • April 24, 2015
  • BY Blake Herrin
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

Surgery was on his bucket list, but Bruce Ryan didn’t want to wait until he retired to repair his debilitating and painful rotator cuff injury. The 59-year-old construction manager in Northern California could have traveled the six hours to Stanford Medical Center, considered one of the top facilities in the United States.

“No, we went to France—to Toulouse, France —and did it,” said Ryan, chuckling at the thought. “It was great.”

All kidding aside, the American patient didn’t have to pay a dime for his medical tourism surgery in France – even $7,000 worth of deductibles and co-pays were waived – plus, he got to tour the Pyrenees Mountains, take in the local art scene, and sample baguettes, chateaux, Truffles and other French indulgences.

“The food in Toulouse was out-of-this-world,” said Ryan. “We ate like royalty.”

His employer, the Blue Lake Rancheria tribe which operates a casino and hotel in Northern California, covered all costs; yet, saved about $12,000—roughly 35 percent of what the surgery would have cost in the United States. On top of that, 10 percent of the company’s savings went directly into Ryan’s 401k plan.

Finding a good doctor—or an appropriate and affordable elective procedure—isn’t always as easy as it was for Bruce Ryan. Despite today’s economic climate which seems to have reduced healthcare options even further, a growing number of patients are looking long and hard for affordable solutions for care.

They are finding medical tourism procedures to be a creative answer to what at first appeared to be a fruitless search. These are internationally accredited providers with procedures that are readily accessible when needed. However, they are not available at their doorsteps, but rather several miles away, perhaps even in another country, where care is both inexpensive and first-rate.

Cost savings—up to 70 percent in some cases depending on the procedure—are a major driver behind medial tourism. But in the end, the patient’s most satisfying rewards are his good health and his productive and improved life.

As for Ryan and Blue Lake Rancheria, both patient and employer reflect positively on their decision.

“It amazes me that the United States could be so medieval in its healthcare,” said Ryan, who is back on the job. “Surgery, both the quality and the experience, were exceptional. Of course, the cost was unbelievably affordable compared to what I would have spent in the United States on co-payments alone.”

For both patients and healthcare providers interested in medical tourism, the $64,000 question remains how, where, and when are these buying decisions made.

Neither the patients looking for medical tourism procedures nor the hospitals or facilitators attempting to provide them can rely solely upon professional or word-of-mouth referrals. Further, social media programs and other digital marketing campaigns require an overwhelming amount of time and effort to identify connect ready patients with applicable treatments.

 

There has to be a better way.

What if there was a gathering place where patients, providers, and facilitators were introduced to each other? A venue at which hundreds of patients came together to share their experiences and expectations? An international forum where patient, provider, and facilitator could exchange data that led to new meaningful patient-provider relationships and better treatments? And what if all of this was available now—not tomorrow, or months or years later.

 

There is a better way…

Medical Tourism Live WebcastOn October 16th, a live webcast entitled “Ask a Patient: Making Dollars and Sense Out of the Medical Tourism Experience” will connect patients from all over the world to the hospital administrators, doctors, clinicians, facilitators, insurance executives, and hospitality and travel interests that make medical tourism happen. This webcast will stream questions and answers from active healthcare consumers detailing what they want and deserve from health travel.

This live webcast will take place during the 12th World Medical Tourism & Global Healthcare Congress, in Abu Dhabi UAE on October 15-17, 2019.

For more information on Medical Tourism in Seoul, Korea; Panama or Colombia, please contact our office HERE

Here are a few articles you will really love on Medical Tourism around the Globe:

Medical Tourism for Expats and Retirees in Latin America

Medical Tourism in Colombia

Nicaraguan Tourism On A Steady Rise

 

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Related Topics
  • medical tourism
  • Overseas medical tourism
Previous Article
  • Your Escape Plan

Ethical Investments Offer Major Returns

  • October 24, 2014
  • BY EA Editors
View Post
Next Article
  • Your Escape Plan

ATM – “Temporarily” Out of Order

  • December 15, 2015
  • BY David J Drummond
View Post
You May Also Like
Nordic chapter of adventure
View Post
  • Rest of Europe
The Nordic Blueprint for Happiness
  • BY Aimee Hall
  • June 30, 2025
Dating Abroad: Love Across Borders
View Post
  • Spain
Love, Loss, and Language Barriers
  • BY Isha Sesay
  • June 27, 2025
Living in Zurich Switzerland
View Post
  • Field Notes
Zurich’s Formula for Happiness
  • BY Cynthia Weiss
  • June 22, 2025
Happiest City in Australia, Adelaide’s skyline peeks through the Park Lands
View Post
  • Field Notes
How Adelaide Climbed the Happy City Index
  • BY Eibhlis Gale-Coleman
  • June 15, 2025
Healthcare systems
View Post
  • Health
What You Need to Know About Healthcare and Insurance Abroad
  • BY Isha Sesay
  • June 11, 2025
Barcelona’s modern landmark where sea and skyline meet.
View Post
  • Spain
Why Barcelona Keeps Rising on the World’s Happiness Rankings
  • BY Isha Sesay
  • June 9, 2025
Auckland’s peace begins with the landscape.
View Post
  • Field Notes
Falling for Love and Life in Auckland
  • BY T. Guzman
  • June 2, 2025
Stillness, space, and the quiet rhythms of Finland.
View Post
  • Wellness
The Finnish Formula
  • BY Miko Takama
  • May 16, 2025
Trending Posts
  • The True Cost of Leaving America 1
    • Interviews
    The True Cost of Leaving America
    • June 25, 2025
  • Living in Zurich Switzerland 2
    • Field Notes
    Zurich’s Formula for Happiness
    • June 22, 2025
  • Nordic chapter of adventure 3
    • Rest of Europe
    The Nordic Blueprint for Happiness
    • June 30, 2025
  • 20 Reasons Not to Move to Dubai (In No Particular Order) 4
    • Field Notes
    20 Reasons Not to Move to Dubai
    • June 27, 2025
  • Dating Abroad: Love Across Borders 5
    • Spain
    Love, Loss, and Language Barriers
    • June 27, 2025
Subscribe
Know Before You Go
  • The True Cost of Leaving America 1
    • Interviews
    The True Cost of Leaving America
    • June 25, 2025
  • 2
    • Africa
    The New Africa Travel List for 2025
    • June 20, 2025
  • Rolling emerald fields and soft skies in County Kerry. 3
    • Ireland
    Top 10 Things to Know If You’re Moving to Ireland
    • June 13, 2025
  • A new generation claims space through movement. 4
    • Africa
    How Ethiopia’s Girls Are Rewriting the Rules on Wheels
    • May 30, 2025
  • Residency programs worldwide are undergoing rapid transformation. 5
    • Second Citizenship
    Beyond the Golden Visa – The Future of Residency
    • May 7, 2025
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
Why Subscribe

The newly imagined Escape Artist brings you fresh content with a global focus, and sharp, up-to-the-minute coverage of the joys, challenges, and opportunities of life abroad.

For a limited time, we’re offering a special discount on all subscription deals, so be sure to lock-in these incredible savings and start receiving top-notch travel and expat content today!

Sign up for the EA Newsletter

Get important news delivered directly to your inbox and stay connected!

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Escape Artist
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies Policy
  • Disclaimer

Input your search keywords and press Enter.

Newsletter Subscription

Our Spring Sale Has Started

You can see how this popup was set up in our step-by-step guide: https://wppopupmaker.com/guides/auto-opening-announcement-popups/