Being one of the transcontinental countries, Turkey majorly lies in Asia, while a small part of it lies in the Balkan region of Southeast Europe. Therefore, Turkey is a preferred medical tourist destination for residents of England, Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Romania and even certain countries of Latin America and the Middle East.
Moreover, Turkey enjoys a warm Mediterranean climate throughout the year; while being a preferred tourist destination, it attracts visitors to seek affordable medical treatment as they can rest, recover and rejuvenate in a relaxing atmosphere. Turkey presents a unique blend of European and Arabic language, culture, and food preferences, making it a preferred destination for tourism and healthcare.
The presence of many JCI accredited hospitals who are the one of the Top Hospitals in Turkey have accelerated its image as a reliable medical services provider.
The factors that led to the growth of medical tourism in Turkey
- Affordability – It is one major factor medical tourists consider before travelling abroad for treatment, while Turkey is known for affordable and easily accessible healthcare. Top medical treatments available in Turkey include hair transplant services, cardiac treatment, dentistry, cancer treatment, cosmetic procedures, and a host of surgical procedures performed at nearly less than half the cost in the UK, Europe, and even the United States of America.
Medical tourists visit Turkey for a host of medical services such as cosmetic reconstruction surgeries, especially rhinoplasty, abdominoplasty, FUE and DHI hair transplantation procedures offered at highly competitive rates.
- Medical Infrastructure – The extent of medical services and the presence of qualified and experienced medical professionals are given considerable thought. In these aspects, Turkey has qualified doctors and medical professionals who have trained and gained experience in the United States of America. In addition, most hospitals in Turkey offer medical services in cooperation with top-notch medical centres such as Mayo Clinic, Harvard, Medical International and John Hopkins.
Also, as mentioned above, Turkey lies in Asia and Europe, so residents of these continents prefer to travel to Turkey to seek affordable medical treatment. Furthermore, Istanbul, one of the main Turkish cities, offers excellent air connectivity of more than 300 direct flights while the airport can cater to nearly 200 million tourists annually.
- Turkish Airlines offering discounts – In a recent announcement, Turkish Airlines is offering discounts on its flight fares to medical tourists arriving in Turkey. Also, patients from nearly 50 countries can arrive in Istanbul within four hours on account of enhanced air connectivity for their medical treatment.
- Multilinguistic fluency – This is yet another important factor contributing to medical tourism in Turkey. Most doctors and healthcare professionals in Turkey can speak and write in English. And at the same time, they know foreign languages as they have travelled to these countries for studies and acquiring experience.
There are nearly 50+ JCI accredited medical and health institutions in Delhi that offer quality and safe healthcare, including Anadolu Medical Center, Istanbul Memorial Hospital, Medicana Healthcare Group, Memorial Antalya Hospital, and Neolife Oncology Center, Medical Park Hospitals and many more.
Incidentally, during the COVID pandemic, Turkey was offering medical tourism services while most of the countries had scaled down their operations. The hospitals in Turkey followed the WHO-laid down COVID safety protocol and guidelines and yet managed to save lives of many critically ill patients, relating to their dedication to treat and serve people. Currently, Turkey has intensified its efforts to welcome more medical tourists and has welcomed tie-ups with Global Organizations to increase the patient footfalls. It’s likely inclusion in the European union will also give a good boost to this sector.
The world is getting closer with improvements in communication and travel connectivity, it is convenient and easier to connect with people across the globe. Similarly, the presence of the World Wide Web has emerged as viable platform for exchange of information which in this case related to medical treatment available.
Patients can now connect with doctors and medical professionals seeking best medical solution to recover from their illnesses and ailments. If they wish, they can even travel to these countries and seek suitable treatment for recovery. Medical tourism is gaining considerable traction through the Internet and able to cater to increasing number of people. With dedicated medical tourism companies available to assist and help patients seek their preferred treatment, in their preferred country, they can still aspire to live a healthier and longer life.
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