Frequently Asked Questions
What is Medical Tourism?
Medical Tourism is the beautiful practice of people traveling overseas to other countries and locations to receive affordable, high quality medical services due to the situation with the healthcare system on their country of origin. For example, in the US, prices are seriously high and the healthcare system is in the middle of collapse, healthcare reform will only help to healthcare costs to sky rocket. The Deloitte report on medical tourism reveals the amazing number of people traveling abroad for this practice, and projects a growth of 35% annually for the years to come. In Canada, the issues are more related to long waiting lists, and medical tourism means hope, vacation and of course savings, as prices in Latin America are usually a fraction of North American medical fees and costs. Medical Tourism has been happening for decades, but it is not until the last probably five years that medical tourism companies and agencies got created, and that it became an industry with professionals in place from the Tourism and Medical fields working together to establish a distribution channel for the delivery of a professional service, with the most amazing results. Why do people travel abroad to obtain health care?
Circumstances may vary from patient to patient, but normally:Pricing: Prices are considerably higher in North America and Europe than what they are in other countries, and of course people are starting to notice this little fact that can be huge for many. Quality: The US is no longer the higher quality country offering medical services, as state of the art facilities with highly trained physicians that are also accredited, exist all over the world, and is no longer a secret that healthcare is not something that should be accessible for people that has money or high positions and incomes only, but it is a mankind necessity that should be equally available to people, but that is not the case in North America. So, equal to or better quality, are now available thru Premiere Medicine, certified quality, and waiting for you. Tourism: Besides the savings and the solution a patient is looking for, there is the tourism side of the industry that will allow you to get to know breathtaking places, so now combining the medical need you have, with an unforgettable visit to one of the destinations Premiere Medicine has to offer is a reality, that costs you a fraction of the price the procedure alone would cost, talk to us, we will assist you on finding both, the location of your dreams for sightseeing, tours, experiences, etc, plus the physician and/ or procedure, as part of your travel with special conditions and results. Accessibility: The accessibility and availability are definitely something that patients looking for overseas medical travel consider before making a decision, long waiting lists in the UK, or Canada that can even exceed one year of waiting, one year that many people can’t afford to spend, or can’t afford to wait, is something that is really meaningful when deciding, not to mention the price advantages that patients can have access to when talking to us at Premiere Medicine. Just talk to us, tell us your story, and we will move forward to help you on each and every detail of your medical travel.
What about the quality of the Hospitals working with Premiere Medicine?
Premiere Medicine is really what the name suggests, you can be 100% sure that thru the experience of our company in the Medical Tourism Industry, we do know who the good players are, we know them, and carefully chose them and studied them, Premiere Medicine Network just includes JCI, ISQUA or Trent accredited hospitals, or, when talking about ambulatory surgery, we work only with accredited institutions as well, normally by the AAAHC or AAAASF. This way we make sure that the patients are really receiving equal to or better healthcare services than in their own country, so basically top notch, state of the art Hospitals and Clinics, otherwise wouldn’t be a part of our highly reputable Network.What is accreditation and what are the benefits?
Accreditation is one of the most important aspects that medical travel involves, and we encourage the patients to make the right decisions regarding their healthcare needs, so this means that Premiere Medicine likes the fact that patients are getting informed and knowledgeable in the topic of medical tourism, because this way we can help and ensure that we are protecting the patients from the many non reputable medical tourism facilitators that are out there with deceitful information and that work with any healthcare provider regardless of accreditation, quality standards, medical equipments, etc… Not to mention the fact that some others are just a hoax. Please visit these links for further information on accreditation.http://www.aaahc.org
http://www.aaaasf.org/
www.isqua.org
http://www.jointcommissioninternational.org/
What is Joint Commission International (JCI) Accreditation?
Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation and certification is the proven process organizations needs to help ensure a safe environment for your patients, staff and visitors. This voluntary process shows any organization’s commitment to continuously improving patient safety.JCI is dedicated to helping international health care organizations, public health agencies, and ministries of health evaluate, improve and demonstrate the quality of patient care while accommodating any specific legal, religious and cultural factors within a country.
Benefits of JCI accreditation and certification:
- Improve public trust as an organization that values quality and patient safety
- Involve patients and their families as partners in the care process
- Build a culture open to learning from adverse events and safety concerns
- Ensure a safe and efficient work environment that contributes to staff satisfaction
- Establish collaborative leadership that strives for excellence in quality and patient safety
- Understand how to continuously improve clinical care processes and outcomes
Bottom line, JCI is a stamp of quality, we know the meaning and importance of international accreditation (http://www.jointcommissioninternational.org/)
