Medical tourism tips for 2015: The top things you should know

Guest post by Mel

What really is medical tourism? It is where you travel abroad for a less expense of medical treatment. Although take note, do not fall for your own trap of going outside without knowing what is out there and without understanding the risk. True enough that medical tourism is what may help you pay less for your treatment but take note: knowing less just might cost you more.

If you are one of those people who are deeply willing to step outside their country but still on the part of decision making on where to go, then you are on the right place. You know why? Well, it is because we prepared things on what you should look into first before giving a thumbs-up on a place to settle in for your medical treatments.

·        Budget

When planning and looking for a place for your medication, do not merely close your financial parameters on the hospital fees alone. Eventually, you are going to have to eat there, buy medicines, even things for survival. Even in cases where let us say you will be going for a lung surgery, you can’t just base your budget on the surgery alone, you will still need to pay for different medicines, injections and such.

That’s why, our TIP # 1 is:

Do not only bring limited money. Make sure you have enough money you can spare yourself with in cases of emergency.

·        Know your purpose

Going on a vacation and having some kind of fever which leads you to hospital confinement is a totally different story from going to a country for medical purposes in the first place. Knowing your purpose of going around the world is a big way to save time and money. You can have everything planned once you know your main point and purpose of going to a country.

This gives people plenty of time for other minor businesses that is why this brings us to TIP #2:

Know your purpose of going out the country. Take note of the things need and understand why you were there in the first place.

·        Know your insurance

Insurances have different perks, conditions and terms. There are only few, very few insurance companies who will still be liable for the accidents a cardholder holds even outside the country. You do not want to end up going abroad assuming you have your expenses covered through your card.

With this, TIP #3 is up:

If you have forgotten the terms and conditions of your card, ask for a new one or find a way to know if they would cover your medical treatments abroad.

·        Hardcore research

TIP #4:

Do not attack in war without having some plan or not analyzing how your opponent’s tactic goes.

You can’t go abroad without researching about it first. It is a must to do heavy research on the whereabouts, expenses, availability and such of a specific medical treatment.

Take note, if you hear somewhere that a specific place has great medical tourism; do not quickly assume that they have what you need. If you are looking for a heart transplant, for example, make sure they offer it on your destination because not everything is offered everywhere. Otherwise, better choose a different destination.

Photo: Pic Jumbo/Viktor Hanacek

When doing some research, check on the following as main things to look for:

o   Availability – the availability of the treatment you are looking for.

o   Cost – the cost of your treatment.

o   Economy – you also need to look into the place’s economy to know how much more you could budget for yourself.

o   Place – by place we mean the location abroad. If you are comfortable on the location or the surroundings of the pace.

o   Background – run a background check on the place’s medical tourism status.

There you go. We hope you would greatly consider our tips for a better trip outside and for a more stress free routine of seeking medical treatment abroad. We wish you a safe flight! See more medical tourism guides today!