12/17/2014 | By: Guest Contributor
Improved in efficiency and appearance, modernized — streamlined.
Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia and Hungary are capitalizing on their newest efforts to provide streamlined services for medical tourism patients without health insurance.
According to industry stats, medical tourism is steadily growing and generating annual revenue in Romania of over $200M.
Romania has witnessed a solid increase in patients — mainly Germans, Italians, and Israelis. However, since Romania joined the European Union in 2007, nearly 25,000 doctors and 15,000 nurses and assistants have relocated for enhanced employment benefits in Germany, France, Spain and Italy, according to the Health Ministry.
Will this move by Romania help keep clinics and doctors abode, bring healthcare workers back home, and preserve the economy?
“A developed private sector that offers appropriate remuneration could prevent the drain of doctors, which is a big and generalized problem in central and Eastern Europe,” started Dan Bucsa, a London-based Economist at UniCredit Bank AG. “The losses in the public health-care sector could be minimized if doctors stayed, and this would also help the economy.”
Medical Tourism in Romania
Beyond the authentic, natural and cultural touristic novelties in Romania, medical tourism benefits have captured the heart of patients around the globe.
Romania is highly-recognized for providing state-of-the-art medical technology in cosmetic surgery, infertility, orthopedic surgery, laser eye surgery, spa treatments and most significantly — cosmetic dentistry.
The European country is home to some of the top cosmetic dental practices around the globe according to the latest research by RNCOS, a business consulting service firm providing multiple services to companies wishing to engage in any business expansion.
In the report “Romania Dental Market Analysis”, it indicates that Romania has emerged as one of the best cosmetic dentistry destinations globally with an increasing amount of individuals visiting Romania to seek affordable cosmetic dental treatments.
In Hungary, the government has awarded financial support worth 58 million euros in the industry since 2012, including key development in wellness and spa facilities, dentistry and ophthalmology.
On the Rise
The Romanian government has created an inter-ministerial commission to identify any issues preventing the development of medical tourism and boost the progression of tourism with a streamlined process and any needed legislative modifications.
"We have resources, we are motivated and we want to develop this activity for the benefit of patients in Romania, Europe and elsewhere in the world," stated Vasile Cepoi, Advisor to Prime Minister Victor Ponta, during the opening of the International Tourism Conferences in Bucharest in 2014. "We need to work on improving our image abroad by attending international fairs, by an excellent presentation of our tourism bureaus abroad and by finding those 'ambassadors' who know how to explain that we still have that 'authentic, unique' for which foreigners do not pay much.”
With the government investment in the booming healthcare infrastructure and its perceptible commitment to the transparency of outcomes, international patient flow, and cost savings on medical procedures — Romania joins Turkey, Mexico, Israel, and Thailand on the fast-track to elevating medical tourism in 2015.
