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Philippines stumbles ahead with medical tourism plan
But some say the developing nation still needs a lot of work before it’s ready
By KARIN BASARABA
With the announcement of last month’s medical tourism project, the Philippines government seems hungrier than ever to grab a slice of the medical tourism pie – but are they ready?
Many have criticized the ambitious program saying that local residents will be even more neglected than they are now. Others say the Department of Health has no business promoting tourism.
The Philippine government still aims to have the six hospitals slated for the project completed by 2010, which many say are in dire need of upkeep and repair. Has the island nation bitten off more than they can chew?
Reports say that 50 per cent of Filipinos die without receiving any form of health care and that the waiting list for life-saving heart surgeries topped 4,000 patients in 2004.
The secretary-general for the Heath Alliance for Democracy described the government’s stance as treating health care as merchandise for sale, rather than an obligation it should provide the people.
“Why is the Arroyo government pushing for the commercial sale of health services when it cannot even provide for the health needs of the vast majority of Filipinos?” said Dr. Gene Alzona Nisperos.
It is often asked whether medical tourists take away services and resources from the local population. However, in the case of MedSolution.com, medical tourists are actually helping the local residents.
MedSolution.com's partner hospital in India, Krishna Heart Institute, is focused heavily on providing medical services on a charitable basis to the needy patients in its community. That means that the money raised by treating international patients actually subsidizes the care costs for local residents.
As a result, Krishna Heart Institute has set up the Divya Jyot Charitable Trust, which helps deserving people pay for their cardiac treatment - in some cases paying for it completely. It has also sets up free cardiac check-up camps for people in rural areas and free preventative health check-up camps in various parts of the state.
The hospital sponsors free surgeries for the under-privileged population, as well as administers a reach-out program to organize medical camps in remote areas where doctors and medical services are not available. Krishna Heart Institute’s charitable activities have been recognized in India and internationally through a number of awards.
In addition, the trust was able to provide 600 meal packets and water pouches a day for a week to the victims of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake. They also sent medicine, tents and food to the people of Bhuj immediately following the earthquake.
The health care system in the Philippines is two-tiered: expensive private facilities versus lost-cost, but crowded, government-run hospitals. But the six hospitals initially slated for the medical tourism project are actually government hospitals. Many wonder what will happen to the patients who cannot afford to go to the private clinics in an already overburdened system.
However, medical tourism has been on the rise for several years now in India and their hospitals generally offer services to both local residents and international patients. The same can also be said for France. These countries understand that they need to be able to provide services to their own citizens before they can start helping people from other nations.
By closing six government-run hospitals to the local residents there will be a definite strain on the system. The Phillipines government is undoubtedly concerned about the amount of doctors that have taken a step down and become nurses in North America. They hope medical tourism will not only boost the developing nation’s economy, but lure back these trained professionals to their home country.
But if the infrastructure is not in place to support these professionals, doctors may find it difficult to return. While the Phillipines attempts to lure back their doctors, developed nations are actively recruiting nurses from India to work in their nurse-strapped hospitals.
Meanwhile, many of the doctors working in hospitals that cater to medical tourism in India are trained in North American and the United Kingdom. These doctors have often taken a drastic pay cut to return home and help the people of their motherland. They also see the value in building medical tourism as a viable and profitable industry for their country.
Another advantage of choosing the Philippines, the government says, is that their prices are substantially cheaper than in other countries with medical tourism. They say that a coronary bypass in the Philippines, which costs up to $100,000 in the US, is only $25,000.
However, with MedSolution.com in India, the same procedure is $7,000. Even at MedSolution.com’s partner hospital in France, which boasts the world’s best health care system according to the World Health Organization, a coronary bypass would still cost $33,000 — just a few thousand more than in the Philippines. It is difficult to say where the price differential comes from.
Because the Philippines DOH has chosen to use existing government-run hospitals as the site for their soon-to-be international hospitals, they admit a lot of renovation is needed before they will be fit for service. If the government is having a difficult time funding the needs of their own citizens, where will they find the money to fund these renovations that are absolutely necessary in order to attract Western patients?
But MedSolution.com understands there is a certain degree of skepticism that accompanies the medical tourism industry. That’s why they ensure that all of their partner hospitals meet or exceed the standards set by hospitals in North America. All of the surgeons’ credentials are confirmed with their educational institutions and all staff must speak fluent English — whether it’s the nurse making the bed or the surgeon in the OR.
There is no denying that the Philippines would make an excellent destination for medical tourists. The lush, tropical landscape and white, sandy beaches combined with the infamous Filipino hospitality all point to a holiday fit for a king.
However, there is one facet of this equation that seems to be missing: the medical portion of medical tourism. In order for the Philippines to be successful in the medical tourism industry, they need to take a hard look at the medical services they will be able to provide. And that includes their own people, not just international patients.
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