Medical tourism

Medical tourism (also called medical travel, or health tourism) could be defined as patient movement from highly developed nations to less developed areas of the world for
medical care by bypassing services offered in their own communities. Medical tourism differs from the traditional model of international medical travel where patients generally journey from less developed nations to major medical centers in highly developed countries for medical treatment that is unavailable in their own communities.
Services typically sought by travelers include elective procedures as well as complex specialized surgeries such as joint replacement (knee/hip), cardiac surgery, dental surgery, and cosmetic surgeries. Individuals with rare genetic disorders may travel to another country where treatment of these conditions is better understood. Over 50 countries have identified medical tourism as a national industry.^[3]