September,2013

MACAURO
NEWSLETTER TO EDUCATE AND EMPOWER

October 2016 Volume IV

From the ancient time India is famous for its traditional treatment
EMERGING BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES therapies and have made a recognized place in the medical literature
AND CHALLENGES ON WELLNESS AND by providing yunani, aurvedic, allopathic, homeopathy and
HEALTH TOURISM INDUSTRY IN INDIA naturopathy advantage of medicine not only to the Indians but also
to the foreigners.. However other countries such as south Africa ,
Dakshayini * Kavitha ** china, Malaysia , Thailand and Indonesia are accelerating their
medical facilities and strategies to cater to the larger market shares
INTRODUCTION and revenues. Therefore, it is essential for India to redesign the
Travel and tourism industry is the second highest foreign marketing plans and strategies on medical and wellness tourism in
exchange earner and one of the largest service industry in terms of several services offered in our country. We should also
India. Of the various categories of tourism, what is more prove that our country is an ideal and unique destination for global
interesting and becoming increasingly popular is the medical health care.
and wellness segment. Nearly nine percent of the total
employment in the country is engaged in this industry.In the THE MEDICAL TOURISM STRUCTURE IN INDIA
recent scenario , there is a significant and remarkable growth in
wellness and health tourism industry which has become a
multibillion dollar earner to the countrys economy.As defined
by Goodrich and Goodrich medical tourism is the attempt on
the part of a tourist facility or destination to attract tourists by
deliberately promoting its healthcare services and facilities in
addition to its regular tourist amenities Medical tourism is the
concept of travelling to a particular destination to avail the
opportunity of the world class healthcare services offered by
the best experienced healthcare professionals at the DIMENSIONS OF WELLNESS TOURISM
technologically most advanced medical facilities in complete
privacy and for affordable cost. . The number of international MEDICAL/COSMETIC HOSPITALS, CLINIC
tourist arrivals expected to rise from one billion in 2012 to 1.8 PHYSICAL SPAS, MASSAGE, YOGA
ESCAPISM AND BEACHES, MOUNTAINS,
billion in 2030, countries worldwide are increasingly focusing
PSYCHOLOGICAL HOLISTIC CENTRES
on tourism as a developmental strategy. Of the various
FOCUSED ON SELF
categories of tourism , what is more interesting and becoming
DEVELOPMENT
increasingly popular is the medical and wellness segment. Here
health tourist not only gain the cure for his disease but also SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE, YOGA
enjoy the benefits of scenic scenes, natural beauty, spas ,and RETREATS
pleasant weather. Further Uttarakhand of India is gaining COMMUNITY ORIENTED VOLUNTARY WORK.
importance for healing the patient with yoga and meditation
and natural medicines. According to a Mckinsey-CII study the
industrys earning potential in India is estimated at Rs.15000-
20000 Crores by 2012 . Medical tourism can contribute Rs
5,000-10,000 crore additional revenue for up-market tertiary
hospitals and will account for 3-5% of the total healthcare
delivery market.
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COVER ARTICLE
OBJECTIVES
To explore the potential of medical tourism industry in India
To study the challenges faced by the wellness and medical tourism
in India.
To highlight the cost effectiveness of medical treatment in India.
SWOT analysis on Indian medical tourism industry.
Measures to be undertaken to encourage medical tourism.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of the study is to track the opportunities available to make
our country a unique destination for wellness and health tourism
industry in India. We also face various challenges which has to be
overcome through holistic measures undertaken by all the
stakeholders. Clearly there is dearth of literature combining both
modern and traditional healthcare systems. Keeping in view the
various constraints, the scope of our study is limited to secondary
data.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research methodology is partly descriptive and exploratory. for this
study data and information has been collected with the help of books,
magazines, newspapers, research articles, research journals, E
Journals, report of ministry of Tourism and the web site www.health
tourism india.com.
OBSERVATION AND DATA ANALYSIS
Of late the Indian medical and wellness tourism sector has been
witnessing remarkable growth. Based on surveys conducted by
Assocham (the associated chambers of commerce and industry of
India) and NSSO ( National Sample Survey Organisation), the
market size is likely to more than double from Rs. 4500 crore in 2011
to Rs. 10,500 crore by 2015. The inflow of medical tourists which
stood at 3 lakhs in 2009 rose to 8.5 lakhs in 2011 and is likely to
touch 32 lakhs by 2015.
The country is attracting an ever increasing number of tourists
predominantly from the Middle East, Iran , Pakistan, Afghanistan,
Bangladesh, Turkey, Europe and the USA. The states that are fast
emerging as Indias best medical tourism. Medical tourism centres re
Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, TN, Maharashtra and New Delhi. The
medical services that attract international attention predominantly
include dental and eye care treatment, orthopaedics and trauma,
cardiac care including surgery, urology, neurosurgery , plastic and
cosmetic surgery, laparoscopic surgery, gastroenterology, kidney
transplant , knee and hip surgeries.
The alternative medicine services available in India namely, Unani,
ayurveda, homoeopathy, naturopathy and wellness services
including yoga and meditation are increasingly becoming popular
among foreign patients as non-surgical treatment for various
ailments. Kerala for ayurveda and Kairali massage, Uttarkhand for
yoga and meditation, Goa for holistic living, Rajasthan for spas and
heritage living, are some of the world renowned places in India for
alternative medicine. Furthermore, the country is also renowned for
its unique travel experiences on an emotional, intellectual and
spiritual level.
. A combination of many factors has lead to the recent increase in
the popularity of medical tourism or Medical value travel.
Exorbitant cost of basic health care and medical insurance cover,
high cost of modern medical facilities in advanced countries, ease
and affordability of international travel, favorable currency
exchange rates in the global economy, rapidly improving
technology and high standards of medical care in the developing
countries, best medical health care education at the medical schools,
proven safety of healthcare in select foreign nations, international
accreditation of foreign hospitals and access to U.S., U.K. and
Australian board certified surgeons operating in select foreign
countries have all contributed their share to this rapid development
of global medical tourism or medical health care outsourcing
quality care, relatively cheaper services compared to the west,
package deals and cheap services from the tourism and hospitality
sectors are the biggest attraction of medical tourism in India. The
price differentials of various procedures for Singapore, Thailand
and India with the US reveal the economic advantage offered to
interested patients by India
UNPRECEDENTED OPPORTUNITIES
India could provide unprecedented opportunities both as a market &
as solutions: Consumers expectations are increasing as well as costs
are also increasing: there is a growing imbalance between the
developed and underdeveloped countries. Some countries are
vulnerable to bioterrorism and thus it needs to have a restructuring
of health delivery systems. India offers holistic healthcare
addressing the mind, body and soul, with yoga, meditation,
ayurveda, allopathy and other traditional Indian systems of
medicine. Tourists travel India for rejuvenation promised by yoga
and ayurveda. Due to demographic changes & disease patterns,
unhealthy work/life environment, pollution, epidemics, natural
disasters, and ethical considerations there is growing demand for
the healthcare services. India holds a strong reputation in advanced
healthcare segment, viz., cardio-vascular surgery, and organ
transplant and eye surgery countries along with the diversity of
tourist destinations.
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CHALLENGES BEFORE INDIAN MEDICAL TOURISM SWOC ANALYSIS

No strong government support or initiative to promote medical STRENGTHS
tourism
*Availability of quality service at
Poor coordination between the various players in the industry- affordable cost
hospitals, air line operators, and hotels. Vast supply of qualified doctors
*Strong presence of advanced
Customer perception as an unhygienic country. healthcare centers like
cardiovascular, organ transplant
Lack of proper regulatory system for hospitals. Internationally reputed hospitals
Lack of uniform pricing policies across hospitals. OPPORTUNITIES
WEAKNESS
No strong support from the government to
promote medical tourism
Lack of coordination between the other
service industries like airline operators, hotels
and hospitals
Lack of uniformity in pricing policies across
hospitals.
CHALLENGES

Strong competition from countries like Thailand, Malaysia, and

Singapore.
Lack of international accreditation.
Overseas medical care not covered by many insurance players.
Under-investment in healthcare infrastructure
Lack of proper regulatory system for hospitals.
Lack of uniform pricing policies across hospitals.
Strong competition from countries like Thailand, Malaysia, and
Singapore.
Lack of international accreditation.
Overseas medical care not covered by many insurance players.
Under-investment in healthcare infrastructure.
MEASURES TO ENCOURAGE MEDICAL TOURISM
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with Ministry of Tourism
set up a task force to evaluate the opportunities in the industry and
formulate a policy to accredit healthcare institutions. Industry
experts terms Medical tourism as the next best thing for the India
because of its inherent advantages in terms of cost & quality. The
need of the hour is to club together a couple of pathies as we have a
strong base of yoga naturopathy, and ayurveda, as alternative
healing therapies.
Create incentive structures (e.g. tax breaks) which encourage the
corporate sector to set-up more infrastructure.
Need to set-up more high-value hospitals/health care facilities
specialty facilities with state of the art equipment and high service
levels.
Develop business models to make these facilities have a smaller
gestation period.
Private firms in the insurance sector should set-up medical
insurance facilities andalso tie-up with foreign insurance
companies to cover foreigners coming into India for healthcare
facilities.
Corporate in the healthcare sector should actively control medical
fraud, insurance fraud in order to encourage insurance firms to
provide medical insurance products.
Increased demand for wellness Lack of international accreditation.
tourism and alternative cures. Overseas medical care not covered by many
Shortage of supply of National insurance players.
Health Systems in countries Under-investment in healthcare
like U.K., Canada infrastructure.
Demand from countries with Customer perception as an unhygienic
underdeveloped health care country.
facilities. Strong competition from countries like
Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore.
CONCLUSION
In order for marketing India as a unique destination for medical
and wellness tourism, primarily it is important to identify the
macro and micro issues facing the industry. It is essential for the
Central and State Tourism Boards to coordinate and collaborate
Research Job on a set of international standards. It is a unanimous
opinion of all the experts and facilitators interviewed that it is high
time the authorities attached significance to this issue. Loopholes
in the administrative system and process of tourism services
demand immediate attention. At a micro-level, the municipal
administration departments need to understand the positive
implications of medical tourism on the countrys economy at large
and act accordingly. Enhancement of physical infrastructure in the
country seemed to be another unanimous recommendation made
by all the respondents from Hyderabad and Bangalore to connect
the potentiality with the demand. Thus, the authorities are required
to chalk out an effective marketing exercise in branding the
country as well as executing marketing strategies in expanding the
medical and wellness tourism market in the country. National
advertising campaign about Brand India and its national
standards could also be advertised both domestically and
internationally. Eventually, the branding and marketing exercise
will attract a larger number of medical tourists to the country, but
what is essential and imminent is delivering the communicated
promise and this is possible only with the integrated efforts of all
involved with the industry.
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