Wanderlust: Expat Life & Style in Thailand Oct / Nov 2017: The Travel Issue | Page 60

Health & Wellness
Bumrungrad
International in many
ways spearheaded the
country’s commitment
to medical excellence.
H I G H S TA N D A R D S O F C A R E :
Why Thailand is Asia's Favorite Medical Destination
by Lidiya Belete
T
hey didn’t know it at the time,
but the Ancient Greeks invent-
ed more than just Western phi-
losophy and the wheel. They were
also the founders of what we to-
day call, medical tourism. It began
with constructing healing temples
in honor of Asclepius, the Greek god
of medicine, to which people would
flock seeking cures for their ailments.
These temples comprised the first
comprehensive medical tourism net-
work and kicked off the enduring
trend to forego local healthcare in
favor of superior treatment further
afield.
As travel became easier and med-
ical facilities more widespread, in-
creasing numbers of people consid-
ered their options abroad in search
of affordable, alternative, or im-
proved medical treatment. From
dentistry and surgery, to facelifts
and fertility treatment, millions of
patients now pack their bags each
year and take to the sky in the name
of health.
60 WANDERLUST
Today, Thailand is viewed as one of
the top-rated destinations for travel-
ers seeking healthcare, with an esti-
mated 2.8 million medical tourists en-
tering the Kingdom annually. Thanks
to the country’s strong focus on the
medical tourism market, expats and
locals alike have easier access to
higher quality health services, while
those visiting Thailand can enjoy the
benefits of world-class healthcare.
Here are some of the main reasons
why Thailand is now among the high-
est-rated medical tourism destina-
tions in the world, accounting for an
estimated 40 percent of the global
market:
1
STRIVING FOR
INTERNATIONAL
ACCREDITATION &
RECOGNITION
Thailand’s continuing investment on
providing stronger medical services,
incorporating the latest technology,
and training healthcare providers to
deliver even better care are some key
reasons why medical tourism booms
in the country. The drive to maintain
such high standards is directly cor-
related with the economic impor-
tance of medical tourists: To stay in
this top position and retain the in-
flux of medical tourists who enter
Thailand each year, healthcare pro-
viders must make constant improve-
ments to their offerings.
One example of this push to pro-
vide the best in facilities and the
latest in medical technology is il-
lustrated by Bumrungrad. The mul-
tiple-specialty medical centre is re-
garded as one of the best in Asia and
sits among the world’s leading insti-
tutions. The popular hospital recent-
ly announced the implementation of
CardioInsight, the latest technology
in the diagnosis of cardiac arrhyth-
mia. It is a development that makes
Bumrungrad only one of three hospi-
tals worldwide (and the first in Asia)
to offer this technology.
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