Medical tourism? A case study of African patients in India

The practice of traveling for better medical care is centuries old. Around the world, patients have been traveling to healers in faraway places, to more suitable climates, and recently, for health care in nations offering services unavailable at home. Traditionally, the U.S. has been a major destination for international patients. However, as health care costs rise, patients are redirecting to developing countries and a billion-dollar “medical tourism” industry, offering cheaper care combined with lavish vacations, is rapidly growing worldwide. Currently, India is considered to provide the best value for medical services. This qualitative project is a case study that aimed to understand the experiences of African patients in India. Grounded theory analysis of 20 semi-structured interviews with patients at a private hospital revealed that the experience of receiving care in India raises several challenges, including navigating language/cultural barriers, high costs, and long-term separation from family and work. Being abroad also inspired critical reflections on patients' own health care systems, particularly in the realms of patients' rights and the efficacy of health professionals. Notably, few patients identified with – or had ever heard of – “medical tourism” in the way it is popularly defined. The implications of this study are numerous, including informing the experiences of future patient travelers, their doctors, and health reform efforts in several African countries. Finally, this analysis suggests a strong future for the globalization of private health care services, raising questions in development economics and putting new perspectives on achieving health care as a human right.