The giant afternoon course doctor?

Where do you think the international patient Center shown above is? Singapore? Thailand? Malaysia? India? Korea?

Read on to discover ...

International Travel Medical Journal this week covers a recent announcement by the Ministry of health, UK (see: UK liberated hospitals to attract tourists doctors) that you want to remove the lid on the proportion of income that NHS hospitals can earn from private surgery. NHS Hospitals are allowed to treat patients individuals (both national and international patients) in addition to their primary responsibility to meet the needs of United Kingdom public.

Many hospitals NHS patient wards have private or dedicated units benefiting its location near extensive clinical and medical technology resources that are available with an NHS General or teaching hospital. These are also supported by patients, but these units NHS has been limited in terms of their potential revenue; throughout the United Kingdom, NHS hospitals were not allowed to generate more than 2% of their income of paying private patients. Some individual hospitals were allowed to generate a much higher proportion, but still were limited in their revenue earning potential.

In medical tourism conferences around the world, the United Kingdom receives barely a mention. However he ranks in top 10 target countries in terms of numbers of medical tourism and, probably, the top 5 in terms of revenue generated (source: Team tourism consulting 2010). London continues to attract high-value medical travellers seeking expertise and quality instead of the lowest prices. The average cost of treatment for these patients is around 20000 € and for individual patients, can be a lot more. London also benefit significantly the costs of these medical travellers remains, for example, accommodation for friends and family during these patient extended.

Private Patients, leading London teaching hospitals as Moorfields Eye Hospital, Great Ormond Street children's Hospital, hospitals of Royal Brompton & Harefield, Kings College Hospital, Royal Marsden Hospital and Guy's & St Thomas ' hospital has always been attractive for international patients and who have to compete with other international centres of excellence in countries like the United States and Germany. In fact, these private installations of NHS patients gain over international private patients (medical tourists) than they do of UK private patients.

The International Center of patient Harris at Great Ormond Street (pictured above) is a good example. The Centre has 130 employees, working with more than 170 clinicians at Great Ormond Street children's Hospital. It is larger than most international patient departments serving "medical tourists" that you would find anywhere in the world. And he is too busy. But, until now, Great Ormond Street and similar NHS run international patients installations have been limited by the lid of the income of private patients.

That is about to change ... London "the giant afternoon travel medicine" may agree to some of the emerging opportunities presented by the international market of patients:

London hospitals above have a long and impressive history to attract international patients.
They were involved in medical tourism long before the term was invented.
And they are able to provide quality and prices that will be attractive to many emerging markets for medical travel. For example, if THE U.S. derived from medical tourism eventually take off and American patients can make significant savings by traveling to London for major surgery (not far short of those available in Singapore or Thailand), London would be an attractive option? Same language (... almost), the same culture (... almost).

This American who traveled to Wales for surgery can be the beginning of a growing trend ....