Commentaries
Keywords: India’s Northeast, Medical Tourism, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal
Date: 30 June, 2023
Medical tourism refers to the practice of traveling to another country or a region to receive medical treatment and healthcare services. It involves individuals seeking healthcare and wellness services outside of their home country, often due to factors such as lower costs, better access to specialized treatments, shorter waiting times or lack of higher quality of care in the home country or region.
In today’s globalized world, India has gained a prominent spot in the arena of medical and wellness tourism. India’s spotlight is mainly driven due to its affordability, short waiting time and availability of high quality and advanced treatment with international standards.
Between 2019 and 2021 about 825,000 medical visas were issued to foreigners and a total of 410,677, 142,928 and 272,190 foreigners arrived on medical visas in 2019, 2020 and 2021 respectively. In 2022, India was ranked 10th in the world in the Medical Tourism Index, compiled by the Medical Tourism Association. According to an estimate, India’s current medical tourism market is worth $6 billion and is expected to expand more than double to $13 billion by 2026.
In India, Chennai is considered as the capital of medical tourism, as it attracts the highest number of patients followed by Gurugram and Mumbai. The patients or the care seekers are usually from the African countries like Ghana, Uganda, South Africa, Sudan and Congo, followed by the BBIN and ASEAN region. India is also now receiving a significant number of medical tourists from the USA, Canada, Australia and UK as well.
In the recent years, a significant boost in developing connectivity in the India’s Northeast Region (NER) has meant that Guwahati, the capital of state of Assam along with other cities in the NER has the potential to emerge as the next go to place for medical tourism and wellness, especially for the neighboring countries (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand).
The NER with its clean and green environment and rich biodiversity can be optimized into a wellness and rejuvenation center of attraction that which augurs well with India’s system of medicine such as AYUSH (i.e., Ayurvedic, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy).
The lush tea gardens on the banks of majestic Brahmaputra River, homestays in the forest of Meghalaya and snow-capped mountains of Arunachal Pradesh can be developed as the Yoga retreat centers and host Yoga and meditation classes along with other Indian system of medicines, catering to various tourists coming to India for the purpose of rejuvenations and healing.
The government of India is also providing e-Visa to foreign nationals who seek treatment under the Indian systems of medicine. For developing such cities and infrastructure the government has also offered easy and low interest loans.
The modern healthcare has also seen a significant development in Guwahati and other cities in the NER, widely recognized multispecialty hospitals like AIIMS Guwahati, Apollo, Fortis, Narayana etc. have come up in the city of Guwahati, providing state-of-the-art treatment.
Healthcare center like North Eastern Institute of Ayurveda and Homeopathy (NEIAH), Shillong; North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Science (NEIGRIHMS) and Shija Hospital and Research Institute, Imphal are few other notable treatment and healthcare providers, giving medical facilities and treatment to people of the region and foreign nationals as well.
Earlier care-seekers from NER and neighbouring countries had no other options other than traveling to distant places. The centrality of the region can be the perfect recipe for emerging as the capital of medical tourism for the sub BBIN region. However, there are challenges that need to be addressed in order to capture the market of medical and wellness tourism.
First, improving air connectivity in the NER with neighbouring countries. At present, the only direct flight with NER is between Guwahati and Paro, Bhutan. For other neighboring countries, they have to fly to Kolkata to come to the NER. There is a need to connect NER cities with cities such as Dhaka, Chittagong, Mandalay, Yangon, Kathmandu. This will provide a closer alternative to care seekers, who today go to Chennai or other Indian cities.
Second, the anticipated bus service between Shillong and Sylhet will provide a closer alternative route for Sylheti people to travel to Shillong and Guwahati rather than going to Dhaka or Chennai.
Third, opening up the facility of medical visas on arrival. To reduce the hassle, the government of India can initiate VISA on arrival facilities for patients and their attendees. It can also provide for availability of ambulance and nursing staff at the border to attend and transport the patients.
Fourth, to ensure that healthcare providers and staff are proficient in the languages commonly spoken by medical tourists, trained language personnel can be stationed at airports to facilitate better communication and understanding. Additionally, providing cultural support such as translators and native food can help patients feel more comfortable and reduce potential language and cultural barriers.
Fifth, investing in targeted marketing campaigns to promote the NER’s medical tourism services can raise awareness among potential patients. This includes leveraging digital marketing channels, participating in international healthcare conferences and events and collaborating with international agencies and medical tourism facilitators.
Sixth, to sustain medical tourism in the region, it is necessary to invest in higher education. Every NER state should have adequate higher institutions to train and upskill the nursing and paramedic staff.
Lastly, investing in telemedicine and collaborating with hospitals in Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal will ensure easy monitoring of patients without the need for in-person visits, which will reduce the frequent aftercare visits to hospitals. Collaborating with hospitals in the neighboring countries will also ensure a steady market for the region.
As the region is witnessing rapid development of air, road, water and rail connectivity, the NER can become a hub for medical tourism which will also boost India’s Neighborhood First and Act East policy.
Pradyut Das is a Research and Program Associate at Asian Confluence.
Disclaimer: The views expressed above and the information available are those of the author/s and can therefore in no way be taken to reflect the position of Asian Confluence
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