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The doctor was happy to oblige, and is now preparing
for the 15 bespectacled tourists who will be arriving in December.
When Dr. Aniruddha Malpani decided to invest
Rs 25 lakhs in equipment for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis -
a technique used to rule out genetic disorders in the embryo- he
knew that "only the rich and desperate" in India would
come forward. But he suspected that international patients might
be interested.
The hunch paid off. Half the inquiries that Dr
Malpani has fielded in this connection have come from abroad.
And in January, he will be undertaking the highly specialised procedure
for an American couple.
Recently, a surprised Dr. Kanir Bhatia found himself
scheduling appointments around flight timings and tourist itineraries.
An American who was coming to India to see the
Taj, had decided to undergo a complicated dental procedure as well.
If these cases are any indication, more and more
visitors are arriving in India for reasons which have as much to
do with stethoscopes as sight-seeing. For, given the fact that top-of-the-line
medical treatment is available in Mumbai for a fraction of the Manchester
or Muscat rate, international patients have actually begun to contemplate
facelift-cum-Fatehpur Sikri trips to India.
"Even if you include the price of the ticket
and some sight-seeing, dental work like teeth implants and smile
design work out cheaper here," says Dr Bhatia, a cosmetic dentist
and implantologist. Concurs Dr Vijay Sharma, a cosmetic surgeon
with a steady international clientele, "The entire country
is focused on the IT revolution. But if we play our cards right,
healthcare could well be the next boom."
To say that 'medical tourism' is already a trend
may be overstating maters somewhat. But there is an undeniable trickle
of international patients, especially in areas like cosmetic surgery,
cosmetic dentistry, infertility treatment and eye surgery.
These branches are often denied insurance in countries
like the U.S. and Canada, or are considered extremely low priority
by national healthcare systems in countries like the UK.
Related News: 'Skilled
manpower, low cost of treatment attract foreigners'
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