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Destination Operation

06-05-2022

2022

Features

The rising cost of surgery is prompting more and more Australians to head overseas for a wide range of medical procedures. Good Health; issue 0813; p046 - 049; Text Available

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caption46 goodhealth. The rising cost of surgery is prompting more and more Australians to head overseas for a wide range of medical procedures, writes Bonnie Vaughan DESTI NATION gm0813tou2p46 - 46 2013-06-14T11:42:41+10:00

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caption47 WhiCh are the top Destinations For australians? Anita Medhekar, an economics lecturer at Central Queensland University who specialises in medical travel research, believes the trend is due to a combination of factors. “Surgery costs have become so high in this country that even middle-class people can’t afford treatment,” she explains. “You also have people who are under-insured or uninsured – and even those with private health insurance fi nd that certain procedures aren’t covered or that they’ve reached their rebate limit for the year.” Then there are public hospital waiting periods that can sometimes stretch up to 18 months. “With some complex illnesses or ailments, long waiting periods mean people’s quality of life goes down,” says Medhekar. Cassandra Italia, founder of Global Health Travel, a medical travel facilitation agency that, she says, makes arrangements for more than 800 clients a year, confi rms that plummeting quality of life issues prompt many of her clients to sign up. Italia also points out that even if you have private health insurance, it may be a month or two before you’ll get booked in for surgery. “We could have you on a plane the next day and in surgery two days later,” she says. Italia adds that many top overseas hospitals offer both state-of-the-art facilities and cutting-edge technology that are not available here in Australia. Most mainstream major surgeries. In addition to cosmetic and dental surgeries, other popular treatments include orthopaedic surgery (such as hip and knee replacement and knee and shoulder arthroscopy), spinal surgery, heart surgery or valve replacement, Lasik and eye surgery, and such reproductive procedures as IVF and surrogacy. edical tourism isn’t just for people looking for cheap plastic surgery with a beach holiday thrown in anymore. In the past few years, it

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caption48 photography Corbis / Dan Saelinger/ trunkarchive. com/ Snapper Media / Getty images and remain in contact each step of the way. Some may also provide recovery apartments staffed by registered nurses. Choose a facilitator with a proven track record of working with JCI-accredited hospitals and clinics. Your facilitator should ensure that everything goes according to plan, even after you return home. Italia says that return visits are rare. “We’ve had a couple of cases where the patient has had to go back and we’ve helped facilitate that,” she says. “We also help arrange follow-up care through Skype, where the patient can talk directly with their doctor online.” Patients can purchase medical travel insurance that will provide coverage both in the destination country and back home in Australia in case there are any post-operative complications. Look for a policy that will also cover the flight, accommodation and treatment should you need to return. Some health experts warn that Australians who travel overseas are risking exposure to superbugs. While Medhekar says this is a subject of debate rather than fact, she advises that it’s crucial to investigate the public hygiene standards of the country you choose. “In Singapore, for instance, it’s world standard,” she says. Likewise, choose a hospital that caters to significant numbers of international patients. Thailand’s Bumrungrad International Hospital, for example, offers detailed information about its health and safety practices on the website. In addition, be wary of dodgy agencies. “You hear about people having botch jobs in Thailand and the reason is because they’re not going to accredited facilities,” warns Italia. “If you’re already saving 40 to 70 per cent, don’t go for the super-cheap option because you will run into trouble.” The upsho

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captionphotography Corbis / Dan Saelinger/ trunkarchive. com/ Snapper Media / Getty images “I was bulimic as a teenager and developed chronic morning sickness when I got pregnant at 20. I was also diagnosed with Crohn’s disease six years ago. Because of all this, I was vomiting 20 to 30 times a day for 16 years and it ruined my teeth completely. And my teeth were making me sicker. Last year, once my Crohn’s disease was under control, my doctor told me that I should get my teeth fixed. My dentist referred me to a prosthodontist [ a dentist who specialises in tooth restoration] because I needed to have 25 teeth extracted and 12 implants. The full cost was quoted at $84,000. I couldn’t afford this, but I couldn’t live with these disgusting teeth. So I got online and found Global Health Travel. They went through all the options with me and gathered quotes from two dental clinics. After doing my own research, I decided which one was right for me. Within a couple of weeks I was on a plane to Bangkok. The dentist met me at the airport and took me to Global Health Travel’s recovery apartments, where their staff met me, gave me a mobile phone and settled me in. At the dental clinic, it was decided I’d have the extractions done under general anaesthetic at Paolo Memorial Hospital. They took a cast of my mouth for my temporary dentures, I went back the next day to try them out and get some adjustments, and returned the following day for the final dentures. In Australia, with all the fittings and adjustments and different appointments, the dentures alone would have taken six to eight weeks. I went back the next morning for the extractions and implants. The procedure went really well and was done in a couple of hours. I was taken to a VIP suite and was looked after by two nurses who stayed in the room with me the whole time. The hospital was so clean and beautiful and m