AsiaNews Magazine Jan10-16,2014 ( Jan 1-7,2014) | Page 66

COVER STORY

January 10-16, 2014

But patients say it was personal
recommendations from their friends
and relatives that led them to come.
“My aunt had plastic surgery
here, as well as my aunt’s friends
and her friends too. Their recommendations helped me choose this
clinic,” said Gulsum Muratbay, a
32-year-old female patient from
Kazakhstan, who’s staying in Seoul
for 17 days for multiple procedures.
Word of mouth and information provided by clinics are becoming two major information
sources for foreign patients.
“In the past, many patients had
plastic surgery at hospitals they were
introduced to through brokers or
agencies. They didn’t have a choice
when it came to finding the clinic that
was best for them. Now, as clinics begin to offer information online and
online consultation, more foreigners
browse information online and talk
to former patients before they make
decisions,” said an official of ID Plastic
Surgery Hospital in Gangnam, who
wished to remain anonymous.

Some brokers without legal licenses have often caused problems,
asking for large commission fees,
forcing plastic surgeons to overcharge foreign patients up to seven
times more than usual or recommending unnecessary procedures.
A few failed cases caused by illegal
brokers have been reported in the
Chinese media.
As foreign patients are becoming
more active in their choice of clinics, they include some travel preferences in their itineraries. According
to the Korea Tourism Organization,
56.9 per cent of tourists here on
medical tourism went shopping or
visited famous tourist spots in Korea during their surgery travels.
The Chinese patient at Dr. Park’s
clinic also said she planned to go
shopping and sightseeing while she
stayed in Dongdaemun, one of the
popular shopping areas in Seoul for
foreigners, for 10-days.
The Korean tourism industry is
stepping up to cater to the needs of
these visiting patients. Major hotels

in Seoul are teaming up with cosmetic surgery clinics and hospitals
in offering accommodation and a
diverse range of travel services.
The Ritz-Carlton Seoul is among
those arranging accommodation
for foreign patients coming to visit
nearby cosmetic surgery clinics in
Gangnam. The hotel is also one of the
few five-star hotels in Korea that has
an in-house plastic surgery clinic.
Last year, it launched an
$88,000 “anti-aging package” that
included a medical checkup, stem
cell treatment, plastic surgery,
skin care and spa treatment as
well as access to the hotel’s restaurants. The package was popular
among Chinese tourists.
“The hotel has staff who are
assigned to take care of Chinese
guests here on medical tourism. We
also plan to offer customised service such as one-on-one interpretation and shopping guides guides
for major department stores in
Seoul during their stay,” said a hotel
staff member.