GUIDE 2016-2017 1 2 3 A THIRD GLIMPSE OF LIGHT... MEDICAL TOURIST VISAS – Medical tourism industry continues to pose a real challenge to the international community at large due to diverse factors, most GOOD IDEA OR BAD ONE? notably the availability of accurate information and date, at the same time, the entanglement and integration with traditional Medical tourist visas are issued in several countries. These visas tourism industry, where this integration has deemed it difficult to can be very helpful for a patient traveling for treatment but they separate both industries from each other. may also present some unexpected trouble for the patient, for the Medical tourism has accounted globally for 14 to16 percent of medical travel facilitator, and for the government issuing agency. the total revenue generated by tourism, while medical tourism Medical tourist visas often let travelers stay longer for treatments revenues amounted to about half a trillion dollars in the year 2012 than they would be able to under a standard tourist visa, which is alone, and is expected to reach 678.5 billion dollars by the year usually granted for 30 days. 2017, accounting for just about 16% of total tourism revenue By Julie Munro, President, MTQUA Some medical tourists can’t get medical treatment if they are worldwide. Medical Travel Quality Alliance granted only 7 or 14 days with a visa on arrival. Many treatments, As a matter of fact, it is difficult to determine the global market size (mtqua.org) including testing and diagnosis, need more time than this. for the medical tourism industry because of the challenges it faces This is extremely helpful to the tourist and to the treating doctor. and the variations in estimates and projections done by global But what’s wrong with this picture? research firms that deal directly or indirectly with this vital sector of Who grants the medical tourist visa? the economy , where most estimates indicate that the medical If the application goes first to a government office, as it does when tourism market’s worth can go as high as 45.5 billion US dollars, and applying for a medical tourist visa to India – via online application 14 million patients around the world have undergone programs or through an embassy – the private patient information included affiliated with medical tourism, where the average expenditures per in the application is not secure. This lack of privacy and protection patient/traveler was estimated at around USD 3,800 per visit. of information violates one of the basic tenets of doctor-patient In this context, “Media Hub Connection - Malaysia” and “Media relationships, which is confidentiality. Hub International - Dubai” are publishing the third edition of the In the United Arab Emirates, an application for a medical tourism “Medical Tourism Guide 2017”, which includes the most prominent visa is forwarded to a government official by the hospital where Dr. Abdulrahim Abdulwahid pioneers in medical tourism counting 12 different destinations, as the patient will be treated. All private patient data is, or should Executive Editor-in-Chief & DG the evaluation was based upon the services and achievements have been, stripped from the application by the hospital, and [email protected] monitored and recorded by specialized international bodies in this the government accepts the decision made by the hospital for field. diagnosis and treatment plan for this patient. Therefore, the question that should be asked is: Why these This is a relationship of trust between the government visa issuing destinations? The answer to that is confined to the level of services department and the hospital requesting the medical tourist visa on and investment put forth towards health care, and the extent of behalf of each patient. compliance with international standards in providing medical How else should medical records and files of medical travelers be services, as well as the quality and transparency of information, the handled to keep them confidential, and to prevent theft or misuse social stability, the tourism infrastructure, and the clinical expertise of client information? reputation of said destination, the adoption of best practices and This is powerful information that for the most part stored by medical medical technology, and finally the readily available medical tourism companies, hospitals and doctor offices and is not in the personnel with global experience. least secure. One of the most important concerns is: international accreditation; Medical records are vulnerable to theft by both professional and which is one of the biggest elements in the growth of the medical administrative staff around the world. Increasingly, electronic tourism market, which prompted the Joint Commission International records are being hacked by identity thieves focused on breaking (JCI) to offer international accreditation for hospitals and facilities into patient data systems. More troubling is that hackers are that are involved in medical tourism. As of today, JCI has awarded increasingly holding hostage patient data and even complete more than 600 hospitals around the world accreditation as this hospital systems, and demanding hospitals pay millions of dollars in number is growing rapidly at 20% annually. ransom. Hospitals have no choice but to pay the ransoms. Under the current situation in the Arab world, hard work, Some theft can be stopped by encrypting data and taking other dedication, and commitment to revolutionize the medical tourism safeguards to protect patients’ electronic health information, and industry is crucial by enabling and empowering all different training employees about privacy and security. available resources in the Arab world, and attract more foreign Other security breaches happen when computing devices such as investment, and media promotion both locally and globally. tablets, laptops and smartphones are lost or stolen. Encryption or using cloud-based electronic health records can prevent medical records on missing laptops or tablets from being compromised. How can medical traveler data be kept secure and confidential? A new best practice paper, MTQUA Website and Internet Best Practices in Medical Tourism, just published by Medical Travel Quality Alliance, describes how hospitals, facilitators and medical travelers can keep confidential data safe and secure. 4 5 Malaysia 17 Thailand 39 Singapore 45 South Korea 49 India 53 UAE 61 Turkey 67 Jordan 73 Cyprus 77 Czech 83 Germany 89 Azerbaijan 95 CONTENT CAPITAL AREA REGION POPULATION 6 7 CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL QATAR OFFICE: Dato Noor Mohamad Mohamed Al Soofi Tel: +974 6668 2824 Mohamed Hassan Mob.: +974 33115135 EXECUTIVE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Maher Ibrahim Director & DG Yusuf Waswas Mohamad Al Boutary Dr. Abdulrahim Abdulwahid Eiad Mahmoud Yousuf Abdul Karem Al Jamal OMAN OFFICE: Our Services CONSULTANT BOARD Heba Mostafa Hashem Mob.:+968 92925677 Datuk Seri Azman Ujang Zanib Abdulrahim Director Advertising Dato Tuan Ibrahim Mohamad Saad ART DIRECTOR Publishing House EXECUTIVE MANAGER Manal Basalamah PRINTING Alaa Abdulwahid Superior Press Sdn Bhd Public Relations MARKETING PP13331/08/2013(032685) PR AND PUBLISHING Mohammed AbdulRaheem Lot2063A, Jalan Kusta, MANAGER Amal Mahfoudh Sungai Buloh Translation Kawasan Industri Taman Giath Fowze DISTRIBUTION Jaya, E-media & Multimedia Waleed Salama 47000 Selangor Darul FINANCIAL MANAGER Ehsan Media Campaign Sara Yasmin DISTRIBUTION CENTERS Malaysia, UAE, Saudi EDITING MANAGER Arabia, Conferences & Events Anas Salman Qatar, Kuwait and Oman PUBLIC RELATIONS E-MEDIA Basem Ayad Mohamed Al Soofi ﻣﺎﻟﻴﺰﻳـــﺎ واﻟﻌﺎﻟـﻢ اﻟﻌﺮﺑـﻲ Malaysia & the Arab World published by Education Guide Published By Media Hub Connection Sdn. Bhd. (809065-X) Investment & Trade Guide MALAYSIA UNITED ARAB EMIRATES No.34-3( 3rd Floor) , Jalan 25/70A, Desa Sri Dubai, Deira, Abu Hail, New Safia Building, HALAL Hartamas, 50480 Kuala Lumpur. Guide M. Floor, Office 53A ،Tel: +603 6201 8841 / 8842 Tel: +971 4 2972740, 2971577 [email protected] Mob.: +971 50 646 97 51 Arab-Turkish Relations www.aswaqpress.com E-mail: [email protected] Facebook.com/aswaqpress www.mediahubintl.com 9 Medical Tourism What is Medical Tourism Medical tourism is the travel of people to another? country other than where they normally reside for the purpose of obtaining medical treatment. Traditionally, people would travel from less- developed countries to highly developed countries for medical treatment that is, to seek specialized hospitals and/or medical centers that are not available in their own countries. The recent trend is for people to travel from developed countries to third-world countries for medical treatment mainly, because of cost consideration, though, the traditional pattern still continues. Another justification for medical tourism is local laws and policies concerns, as some treatments may not be legal in their home country, such as some fertility procedures; thus medical tourism can be defined broadly as: Medical tourism is the process of traveling outside the country of residence for the purpose of receiving medical care. Some people travel to obtain medical surgeries or other types of treatments, some people go abroad for dental treatment or fertility treatment. Additionally, people with rare genetic disorders may travel to another country where treatment of these conditions is better understood and research is more advanced. However, virtually every type of health care, including psychiatry, alternative treatments, convalescent care, and even funeral