Medical Tourism in the Philippines
Medical tourism in the Philippines is witnessing a huge growth. The Philippines has been one of the fastest-growing destinations for medical tourism. According to the US Medical Tourism Association magazine, medical tourism in the Philippines grew by approximately 8% in 2007. With health care costs in the west having increased in the last few years and only expected to rise further in the coming years, the future of medical tourism in the Philippines looks very bright indeed. Traditionally, the country has always had a cordial economic, cultural, and political relationship with the United States, and this has helped things even more.
Other than the Joint Commission International (JCI), the association authorized to accredit foreign hospitals, from the United States, a lot of hospitals in the Philippines are also accredited by the International Organization of Standardization (ISO).
Some of the most common procedures that medical tourists travel to the Philippines for are plastic surgery, cosmetic surgery, ophthalmology, dermatology, dentistry, and weight loss surgery.
Medical tourism patients from the United States can save a lot of money by choosing a hospital from the Philippines. Let us look at some of the comparative rates between the USA and the Philippines. a coronary artery bypass surgery which costs around $70,000 to $133,000 in the United States costs around $11,500 to $17,500 in the Philippines, a knee replacement which costs around $30,000 to $53,000 in the United States costs around $5200 to $7700 in the Philippines.
A dental implant which costs around $3500 to $5500 in the United States costs around $500 to $600 in the Philippines, nose surgery (rhinoplasty) which costs around $5500 to $6500 in the United States costs around $2000 to $2500 in the Philippines, complete liposuction (lipoplasty) which costs around $13,000 to $14,000 in the United States costs around $3000 to $4000 in the Philippines.
Most of the Filipino physicians and nurses are trained in the west and are familiar with the kind of care patients from the west are comfortable with, and this is a very distinct advantage the Philippines has over other Asian countries like India and Thailand. The Philippines started to take medical tourism seriously as early as 2006, when the government created the Medical Tourism Bureau after a bill was passed in the Philippine Congress. This helped in creating over 2000 hospitals in the Philippines with well-trained staff and world-class facilities.
All the hospitals in the Philippines have to be periodically accredited by the Philippines Department of Health. However, medical tourists are advised to select only those hospitals that are either accredited by the JCI or ISO. Some of the best hospitals in the country are from the Metro Manila or National Capital Region, which offer luxurious 5-star accommodation and world-class facilities that equal the facilities offered by hospitals in the west, but at less expensive rates. These hospitals are the ones recommended by medical tourism companies in countries from the west.
Some of the top hospitals in the Philippines for medical tourism are the St. Luke’s Medical Center (JCI accredited) in Quezon City and Fort Bonifacio Global City, the Medical City (JCI accredited) in Pasig City, Metro Manila, Manila Doctors Hospital (ISO Certified) in Ermita, Manila, and World Citi Med (ISO certified) in Quezon City, Metro Manila.
Other than world-class hospitals and doctors, Philippines boasts of some of the world’s best spa retreat resorts, which make it one of the most popular Asian countries for medical tourism. A lot of medical tourists, especially from the English-speaking countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand prefer the Philippines, as English is one of the official languages and there is no language barrier.