Menu
In the present age of globalization, what is today called ‘medical tourism’ is not a new phenomenon. Patients have traveled for their medical and surgical care plastic surgery in Turkey since time immemorial. Over the past decade, growing numbers of tourists from both the Global North and the Global South have traveled to an ever-increasing number of countries in search of various medical and surgical treatments, including cosmetic surgery (CS). An estimated 3% to 10% of the world’s population would undergo cosmetic surgery if financial barriers were removed. CS has changed from being a small-scale medical discipline that was exercised only by a select group of wealthy individuals from specific professions and age groups to being an industry that is able to reach wider and more diverse clienteles. Patients choose to undergo cosmetic surgery as a means towards improved body image characterized by overtly apparent physical attractiveness.
Today, besides psychological and ideological reasons for undertaking cosmetic surgery, economic factors and transforming global communication tools have made it possible for persons from the broad spectrum of social strata—from professionals to laborers, from housewives to film stars, from bureaucrats to street vendors, from teenage students to retired civil servants—to become cosmetic surgery candidates. Plastic surgery in Turkey has become a crucial destination for foreign tourists seeking medical services. Medical tourism, as a term, is strictly defined as international leisure travel organized around the receipt of medical services. However, we assign a broader meaning to this term, regarding the word “medical” as related to any type of healthcare, medical procedure or related activity related to such treatment and generally available in a healthcare environment for plastic surgery in Istanbul, Turkey. In this respect, our approach is not limited to leisure travelers. What we observe is a supplemental “medical” itinerary encompassing health services, diagnostic or therapeutic extensions, outpatient services, day hospitalizations or medical house calls within the meaning of a home care service provided outside of the country of residence.
We can think of medical tourism as a type of foreign direct investment that has the potential to lead to the development of high-technology clusters. Imagine a hospital bed for a patient who travels across the border to a neighboring country and who probably pays in hard currency. We can argue that extending the notion of tourism to health services introduces several benefits, including cost savings. In addition to the direct effect (the treatment itself), there are also indirect effects (consequences on the tourist industry, prospects for retirement). Finally, the reputation of the country in question will be enhanced by the establishment of partnerships with the private sector, and these tools will be added to those already in place.
Although the United States has been the destination of choice for years, other countries are stepping up their marketing activity. The list includes countries in Eastern Europe but now also India, Thailand, Singapore, and Jordan. Recently, another country has become an important destination for health tourism: Turkey. Clearly, Plastic surgery in Turkey has become a trendsetter in this industry. What has changed to prompt us to think of Turkey as a potential leader in this new industry? In fact, what is new is the growing number of specialized clinics and doctors who can now offer care of the same quality as their counterparts in Western Europe or the United States but at lower cost. Mathfacièrel, these costs may be up to three times higher in our home country compared to the costs incurred in plastic surgery in Istanbul for similar healthcare services.
Plastic surgery in Turkey procedures are one of the most common surgical areas benefiting from the wider global spread of medical tourism. The fast popularity of Turkey as a destination for cosmetic procedures has led to reports of complications, as the state-of-the-art facilities in seas of sub-standard clinics alluring foreign patients increasingly accumulate. This chapter explores the recent growth of medical tourism in plastic surgery in Istanbul, with a focus on Turkey as a destination. The discussion expands into an examination of the associated areas of travel for travel, and the issues of trust, safety, and quality when pursuing medical tourism for prescriptive or cosmetic surgery. As most of the existing research is based on individuals’ decision making for medical tourism, institutional approaches that cover various aspects of this practice among specific areas of medicine and services within it are not yet deeply explicated. This chapter contributes to this line of research.
Plastic surgery in Istanbul, also known as reconstructive or cosmetic surgery, represents a core function of medical tourism. A 2013 research study into global healthcare providers noted that, apart from dental services, medical tourism reports are largely dedicated to plastic and cosmetic surgery. In the reported 2014 revenue figures, cosmetic surgery in the USA resulted in the highest revenue in the reconstructive and plastic surgery in Istanbul procedure group. In the same line, the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) report showed that the USA, Brazil, South Korea, Mexico, and Germany occupied the top five positions in the ranking of the countries with the highest total percentage of procedures of interest. Turkey has entered into the top 10 countries list since 2012. As the industry is incrementing and becoming more developed, it has started to build its major success factors, incorporating natural, human-made, and legislative ones, from its environments to make Istanbul a center for medical tourism.
With an immense wealth of knowledge, thanks also to the long decade of foot traffic that has undergone different facelifts, Istanbul has become home to medical tourism opportunities. Turkey, in the first months of 2020, was also advertising itself as the best destination on the maps of medical tourism in terms of prevention against coronavirus, preparation, and management. These were common statements brought forth by hospitals, clinics, and every business wanting to capitalize on the demand for health travel under the “tourist hospitals liability.” In such a scenario, Turkey became a model because of the manner in which the private healthcare system quickly organized itself in a country which, before the first outbreak, was among the most popular global travel destinations. Today, Istanbul is the most important city of plastic surgery in Turkey outside of Seoul, where surgeries are cheaper, professional staff and healthcare services are advertised in beautiful landscapes, and buildings or modern hospitals are close to touristic and ancient landmarks, to emphasize the ‘holiday’ aspect of the health journey. With references to the historic past, the civilization, and uniqueness of Turkey, adding to perceptive elements like ‘quality, hospitality, and cost-effectiveness,’ the smart package allows an earlier departure of international patients from the country right after the healing of the surgery. The essential medical tourism elements are thus adequately performed in Turkey.
In 2003, Turkish authorities took action on the issue of health service quality and plastic surgery in Turkey safe procedures. They introduced the accreditation system that involves quality assessments of both public and private healthcare service providers. Over the decade or more that followed the introduction of the accreditation system, the number of certified private hospitals, laboratories, and healthcare institutions increased. Medical tourism also resulted in the improvement of quality and diversity of healthcare services provided. The wide range of private hospitals offering plastic surgery in Turkey safe procedures acknowledges that fact. They continuously monitor and satisfy the health service quality and plastic surgery in Turkey safe requirements. Their primary skills rest with a genuinely personalized approach to patients, many years of surgical experience, modern treatment methods, staff’s in-depth knowledge, and the use of cutting-edge technology.
Turkish accredited hospitals ensure that both international and local patients receive the best support with regard to their healthcare needs at all times. Meanwhile, the staff staying at accredited private healthcare providers respect the principles of patient rights and perform the duties that are connected therewith, in a caring and respectful manner. If you decide to make use of these high-quality plastic surgery in Turkey safe services, the hospitals can arrange all your needs. Such international patient services encompass foreign language interpretation services, bed and breakfast services available to you and your relatives, psychological support, and a list of domestic support services that can help you with your daily life needs. So, the Turkish trip you make can be impressive and enjoyable.
This study explores the drivers of medical tourism and exports of health services in a specific country and focuses mainly on just one particular type of medical service: elective surgical procedures and patients’ preferences. The key finding from the analysis is that both cost reductions due to lower price levels and improved technology appear to be important determinants of the growth in plastic surgery in Turkey. At the industry level, regulatory issues and the certification of health institutions by the national government and independent foreign organizations are far more significant in determining the weight of the different supply-side factors than those factors, such as economic and technological development, that are typically seen as constraints to health services trade. The country’s profile for medical tourism and its challenges in competing internationally are unique in plastic surgery in Turkey.
In view of the importance of the human healing impact in long-term success, the future competitiveness of plastic surgery in Turkey to exploit this so-called comparative advantage position might not solely depend on the low price, the adequate clinical and technical infrastructures. Some institutions have had difficulty in convincing the JCI teams and local site inspection staff that their hospital is well-equipped in terms of communication with foreign visitors, hospitality service, and religiously adapted nutritional offerings. This is due to staff attitude and the lack of suitable dining facilities, for example, at hospitals. For hospital directors aiming for JCI recognition, this means that constant internal education on the importance of everything around medical quality, medical hospitality, clear communication, recovery, and service quality should be improved accordingly, which questions the general theory of the hospital.
We as GOODLOOK clinic have been operating in aesthetic field for more than 12 years with the motto “We care about you”