Medical Tourism Korea: Article on medical tourism in Korea

Korean Hospitals Eager to Tap Overseas Patients

Plastic surgery, other clinics see growing number of patients



Jin Hyun-joo
The Korea Herald, 2 June 2006



With the current boom in Korean pop culture around Asia, Anacli, a Seoul-based clinic for skincare and plastic surgery, has seen a sharp increase in the number of overseas customers.

The hospital treated about 1,000 foreigners over the past year, mostly Japanese and Chinese who are eager to resemble Korean stars.

"For us, the market for foreign patients is inexhaustible," said Lee Sang-jun, chairman of the private hospital which operates five branches in Seoul.

Anacli is set to open a plastic surgery center in China in addition to a medical skin care shop they have already established there, he added.

Anacli is one of the increasing number of Korean hospitals that are eager to tap the growing market for international patients.

Indy Kim, a patient from the Philippines who underwent surgery on a tumor, talks to Choi Won-gyu, president of Wooridul Spine Hospital in Chungdamdong, Seoul. Kim said she came to know of the hospital, well-known for its advanced spine care, through a Philippine business organization. Kim, who was not able to move her body at all, is now able to raise her hands and parts of her body after the operation.

Asians from 11 nations, including South Korea, China and Japan are expected to spend a combined $610 billion in healthcare services and goods in 2013, up from $391 billion in 1999, according to a report by Euromonitor International Marketing Forecasts 2001.

Despite the strong potential in terms of advanced medical techniques, Korea`s medical tourism business is still in its infancy, experts say.

According to a survey, of the over 100,000 foreigners who visited Korea last year, a meager 0.2 percent of them came here for medical treatment purposes, according to the Korea Tourism Organization. The figure is similar to those recorded in 2004, 2003, and 2002.

The Korea International Trade Association said in a recent report that the country has to explore its strong potential to emerge as medical hub, citing high-quality medical workers and advanced medical technology, notably in the field of cosmetics, spine diseases, and major cancers.

"The domestic medical market is set to be saturated," said Lee Youn-tae an official of the state-run Korea Health Industry Development Institute.

"Leading general hospitals may not feel the need to look overseas because they have local patients waiting in line. But, we have to prepare so that we will not lag behind Singapore and Thailand which currently lead the field in this business," he said.

The government has initiated a set of measures to promote medical tourism by aiding hospitals in their marketing and easing related regulations. The government is also pushing to simplify the process of issuing visas for overseas patients, especially from Asian nations.

However, there is room for a lot of improvement among Korean medical institutions, industry watchers say.

"Korean hospitals have excellent technology. But they are not ready to welcome foreign guests yet. They should enhance their services to attract foreign patients," said Lee Hwang, chief of the international patient center at the Seoul-based Wooridul Spine hospital.

Hospitals should invest more in improving services and facilities to cater to foreign patients, such as hiring staff with foreign language skills, he said.

Wooridul Spine hospital is one of the few Korean hospitals that provide a one-stop service to overseas patients.

Well-known for its innovative spinal care treatment, the hospital helps its overseas customers obtain a visa, pick them up at the airport, and even introduces them to a travel agent for a downtown tour.

He said it attracted 411 foreign patients in 2005, up from 192 in 2003, with 10 percent of them coming from abroad for the specific purpose of treatment.

Many of its overseas patients had been referred by foreign doctors who have visited the hospital to learn about its particular expertise, Lee said.



Source:
The Korea Herald

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