"Medical Tourism" is on the rise with more people from the United States, Europe and the Middle East seeking Indian hospitals as a cheap and safe alternative", says an article in an upcoming issue of Bloomberg Markets magazine.
The report says Indian doctors are setting up what could be a 'medical renaissance' in their country and the 'next great boom' for the Indian economy.
Many Indian hospitals are coming together to improve the quality of health care, boost first impressions and aiming for $2.3 billion in annual revenue by 2012, it says.
Instead of paying $200,000 for a mitral valve surgery in the US, a patient could travel to India and receive the same treatment for $ 6,700.
Similarly, rather than paying 15,000 pounds sterling for hip resurfacing in the UK, a patient can get the same procedure for 5,000 pounds in India, including surgery, airfare and hotel stay, the magazine says.
"Would you do it? Has a cheaper workforce enabled India to compete in a field many thought could never flourish in that country? These are the questions many people throughout the world have been asking themselves, and increasingly the answer is 'yes'," Bloomberg Markets says.
The article takes a close look at the people who have chosen to forgo surgery in their own countries and the potential impact of this trend worldwide.
