Turkey is fast becoming one of the major destinations for medical tourism due to the low treatment prices as compared to other nations.
A secure and safe environment, established hospitals, skilled doctors and right climate conditions are some of the factors that determine the potential of a medical tourism destination.
There are two unique and imperative explanations behind individuals who travel abroad for medical purposes – high treatment costs in their native country and seeking better nature of medicines. Turkey is known for its historical, cultural and natural beauty which attracts tourists to visit the country. Turkey comes first in the minds of patients who look for both medical treatment and holidays at the same time.
Turkey is known to be one of the best health care destinations because it provides world class certified staff, good hospitals and a tourist friendly environment. Some of the major treatments offered by well-known hospitals in Turkey include plastic surgery, dental treatment, cosmetic surgery, electric surgery, hair transplants, in-vitro fertilisation, eye surgery, cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, orthopaedics and traumatology.
The Turkey medical tourism market, which is valued at around US$ 3.5 billion in 2022, is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 5%, and is expected to be valuated at nearly US$ 7.6 billion in 2032.
Medical Tourism in Turkey: Trends and Analysis of Key Drivers
Medical tourism in Turkey offers a complete package including medical care, spas, thermal, and wellness services along with accommodation in luxury hotels. Turkey medical tourism offers one-stop administration that includes treatment duration, sorting out meetings with health care professionals and booking convenience etc.
The global financial crisis has played a significant role in increasing influx of medical tourists to Turkey due to the low-cost medical procedures and vacations in the country. Demand for cosmetic surgeries such as facial implants, skin resurfacing, nose, ear, eyelid and tummy tuck surgery, hip replacement, liposuction, breast lift, breast augmentation, breast reduction and chemical peel are increasing in Turkey due to the rise in the cost of such surgeries in Europe and North America.
High-quality medical care is available at reasonably low prices in Turkey. People prefer to go for medical treatments to Turkey, because of the highly skilled staff and doctors in private hospitals and clinics. Advanced medical technologies such as Cyberknife, Vinci surgery robot, real beam, PETCT, IGRT, MRI, and Gamma knife are used efficiently by private hospitals and clinics in Turkey and some hospitals are affiliated with the top U.S health institutions such as Harvard Medical School and John Hopkins Medicine.
The cost of many treatments is half in Turkey as compared to Western Europe and the U.S. Some of the hospitals that provide world class facilities and best treatment in Turkey include Anadolu Medical Center, Bayindir Hastaneleri Hospital and Guven Hospital. Further, Turkey has introduced tax-free health care zones with the main focus of attracting foreign medical tourists.
Medical Tourism in Turkey: Restraints
However, medical tourists visiting Turkey find it difficult to communicate with locals and health care professionals at the time of their visit. People find it difficult to get the necessary information about good hospitals and skilled medical professionals and more legal framework and complex processes are involved here. Medical tourism facilitators enable the foreign travellers to overcome these challenges and act as a representative of the tourists in the destination throughout the treatment process.
Medical Tourism in Turkey: Top Cities
The cities that are well known for offering quality healthcare facilities in Turkey are Istanbul, Gaziantep, Ankara, Erzurum, Bursa, Izmir, Tekirdag, and Sivas.
Istanbul is meant for offering best in the world medical care, which is way cheaper than the medical facilities in Europe and USA. The healthcare facilities in Istanbul has improved drastically over the past few years. In fact, Istanbul has become a popular destination for medical tourists especially from Europe.
However, if we talk about Izmir, it has a geographical advantage as compared to many places in Turkey. Apart from that, there are also major investments that are happening in health sector in Izmir. So, in the future, even Izmir can emerge as a potential spot for medical services.
