OPINION: Growing the economy through Medical Tourism
Medical Tourism is a term which refers to when a person travels to another country for medical care. For decades, people have been travelling to other countries specifically for just sight-seeing, like those who go to the scenic green plains of Bali in Indonesia. Others travel to indulge in memorable experiences of the African game safaris like those who come to Uganda. While others travel abroad just to have leisure and relaxation like those who flock to the sandy beaches of Sardinia, Majorca, and Canary Island in Southern Europe.
However, new trends have emerged where people now travel to other countries specifically for health or medical care services. The fact that such travel includes and is characterized by all the antecedents that define tourism in its original sense; such travel has come to be referred to as Medical Tourism.
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It must be noted that on the one hand the institutional characteristics of the national health care system do shape the demand for medical tourism while on the other hand, the institutional characteristics of the health system of a particular country does shape the very nature of the impact of the medical tourism on that particular country.
The implication of this is that the more organized, robust and comprehensive the institutional health system of a particular country is and the lay out of its health care ecosystem to provide affordable, easily accessible quality health care services, the less probability of its citizens will travel abroad to seek medical care services. Instead, there will be noticeable increase in the numbers of medical tourists going to that country from other destinations.
This has been and continues to be the trend currently with countries like India, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Germany and Egypt which have become the global destination for medical tourists. It must be noted that the global medical tourism market size has grown steadily since 2016. Recently it was valued to have reached $54.4 billion in 2020 and is forecasted to reach a market size of over $200 billion by 2027.
It therefore means that a country like Uganda which is trying to grow its economy with all the prevailing limitations, ought to be under-taking a serious review of the medical tourism concept as a viable opportunity to grow and its resource envelope.
The major categories of procedure that the patients seek to access abroad are: dental care, orthopedic surgery, cosmetic surgery, fertility treatments, organ and tissue transplantation, kidney, heart and cancer treatment. Currently the main destinations for Uganda’s patients seeking treatment abroad are; Kenya, South Africa, India and Turkey. Patients go to these countries for treatment on recommendation of our local doctors and or the National Medical Board. These referrals are done based on the following reasons:
- It is perceived that the diagnostic capacity offered abroad is better.
- That the medical care and treatment offered in those countries is relatively cheaper than what one would have to pay to access similar treatment locally.
- That the treatment is more personalized than what it is here at home.
- That the quality of medical care and treatment offered abroad is superior and of world class than what one could possible get here locally.
- That there is less waiting time in accessing the required medical care and treatment.
As observed above, medical tourism is a two way phenomena, referring to where patients come to the country to receive medical care services and also it applies when patients go out of the country in order to receive medical care services.
We have all known that tourism as a sector contributes significantly to Uganda’s economic growth through its contribution to the overall GDP of the country. It was reported recently that tourism contributed about 7% to Uganda’s GDP in 2020 and that was in-spite of the global Covid-19 pandemic. It therefore follows that, if medical tourism is integrated in the country’s tourism agenda, the contribution of that sector to our growth will be enormous.
However, in order to have any meaningful yield and benefit from the medical tourism subsector, there are fundamental things that must be deliberately done to orient our health system to be attractive to the medical tourists from other countries. This orientation of the institutional characteristics of our current health system will not only enable and call for our health facilities to be revamped in order to make them attractive to foreign patients, but will also in a major shift be able to help the country cut down if not eliminate the number of Ugandan patients who travel abroad annually on account of seeking medical care services and treatment in other countries.
According to the Auditor General’s reports which are usually tabled in Parliament each year, Uganda government spent a whopping $123mn (Shs.455bn) in 2016 on treatment of its officials in India alone.[1]
The Auditor General further reported that in the year 2014, the government spent $73mn (Shs. 270bn) on treatment and another $113mn (Shs.418bn) on paying for travel and upkeep of the government officials abroad for medical care. In April 2017.[2], the Auditor General reported that government spent US$2.8mn (Shs. 10bn) on sending 140 senior government officials abroad for medical care!
As it can be seen from the figures, this is a lot of money by any standards that the country is losing each year. If this money was to be kept within our economy it would for sure go a long way in addressing the country’s needs under our social economic agenda. Besides, by saving this money, our health system which unfortunately currently largely is funded by funds from the donor community can be locally funded, re-aligned and oriented to serve both local and foreign patients.
Arising out of this shift from the current practice of government spending money on foreign medical care services for its officials annually and in which case those Ugandan patients are the medical tourists to those foreign countries, there would be enhanced income inflow in the economy, savings will be realized and more of our local people who can’t afford to go abroad would be able to access affordable and quality medical care services locally.
However, in as much as there is a need to re-orient and re-align our health system in order to make it possible for the country to start reaping from medical tourists, it is equally imperative for the Mi8nistry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities that is mandated to advocate for and promote the country’s tourism potential to hasten the process of resolving any outstanding conflicts in regard to the development of the Kitagata hot springs in Western Uganda into a viable wellness and health recreation tourism destination. Likewise, there is need to develop through concessioneering the two sites of hot springs of Sempaya in Ssemulki National Park and the Kanangorok (Maji Moto) hot springs in Kidepo Valley National Park.
These hot springs, once fully developed into tourism destinations do have enormous potential of attracting high end paying medical and health wellness tourists that would be coming for the medicinal healing properties contained in the water of these hot springs. This would be unlocking avenues for extra foreign income for the country and into the economy.
Hence, as country, we need to seriously embrace the concept of medical tourism as an area that can help the country save on what is being currently spent on treatment abroad of government officials while at the same time provide adequate health care for the people of Uganda. By investing appropriately in the health sector particularly in the health system in order to make it attractive not only for the foreign patients but also functional for the people of Uganda, immense potential for rapid and robust economic growth of Uganda’s economy will have been unleashed.
It is only when this is achieved, that our now famous slogan of “securing your future” would resonate meaningfully and effectively with the citizens of Uganda.
The fact is that this hemorrhage of this money that goes into travels abroad by both government officials and private citizens on account of seeking medical treatment in hospitals abroad can be stopped or significantly reduced if those that manage the affairs of our country decide to be resolute on the issue.
Written by Edward Baliddawa -4th April 2022
[1] https://www.newvision.co.ug/news/1497153/govt-sends-india-treatment
[2] https://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Government--Shs10-billion---140-officials/688334-3894518-hcaobwz/index.html
