PHM-Exch> New Book: Travelling Well - Essays in Medical Tourism - Full text available online

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: Ruggiero, Mrs. Ana Lucia (WDC) <ruglucia at paho.org>


** ** ** ** **

*Travelling Well: Essays in Medical Tourism

*

*Transdisciplinary Studies in Population Health Series - Volume 4, Issue 1,
2013*
Edited by Ronald Labonté, Vivien Runnels, Corinne Packer and Raywat
Deonandan.

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The whole publication can be found at the following webpage:
http://bit.ly/10FwyS1
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 “…………The opening years of the 21st  century have been characterized by a
variety of  technological, social, political and economic factors that have
seen the disintegration of the  meaning and importance of international
borders. From the power of the Internet to link  disparate populations, to
the consolidation of blocs of politically intertwined nations such as the
 European Union (EU), and the rise of affordable international travel,
forces have been  combining to bring about a globalized world economy that
was only theorized  in decades past.

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An obvious facet of this new globalization is the permeability of borders
to the movement of consumers seeking a variety of medical services, and
providers willing to accommodate, if not  also profit, from this demand.

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The services sought span a surprisingly diverse array of medical products,
interventions and technologies: the motivations of travellers seeking these
services are equally as diverse. ****

Travellers in search of organs for emergency transplantation are often
driven by a shortage of timely, local donors.
Travellers seeking non-emergency surgeries, like those travelling from **
Canada** to **Latin America** for knee replacement surgery, are motivated
by lowered costs and ****

shorter waiting lists.
Reproductive ‘tourists’ may seek maternal surrogates in ****India**** for a
variety of complicated reasons, including cost reduction and the avoidance
of legal restrictions at home.****

Running throughout these diverse sets of services and motivators are a few
ubiquitous threads. Among them is the is the strange marriage of medicine
with global commerce and the challenges that this union poses to ethicists.
There is also the powerful rhetoric of liberalization and global economic
integration that provides the rationale and bolsters the discourse of the
industry….”****

** **

The book’s contents are as follows:

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*•        Chapter 1: Introduction*

o        Sets the stage for the book with modern medical tourism viewed as
a commercial enterprise and a manifestation of the processes of
globalization.  Our use of the term ‘medical tourism’ refers to situations
wherein an individual makes a decision to physically travel to a location
in another country for the purpose of obtaining medical treatment for which
he or she has paid (out-of-pocket or through individual insurance plans).

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*•        Chapter 2: Overview: Medical Tourism Today - What, Who, Why and
Where?*

o        This chapter reviews and updates the current evidence of medical
tourism, with a focus on the cross-border pursuit of more conventional or
customary forms of healthcare (dental, surgical, and diagnostic).

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*•        Chapter 3: South-South and North-South Medical Tourism: The Case
of South Africa*

Provides an overview of the volume and various types of medical tourism to *
*South Africa**, while also highlighting the differences between
North-South and South-South medical travel to ****South Africa****. ****

The article also examines the emergence of inter-governmental agreements on
medical treatment between ****South Africa**** and other African countries,
and discusses the implications of the South African case study on our
understanding of medical tourism.

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*•        Chapter 4: Medical Value Travel in India: Prospects and Challenges
*

o        Analyzes the medical tourism industry in ****India****. The
article discusses the facilitators and constraints to **India**'s medical
tourism industry, presents the benefits and concerns, and outlines positive
steps for ****India**** domestically, as well as internationally, in order
to facilitate its medical tourism exports.

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*•        Chapter 5: Exploring Medical Tourism in Latin America - Two Case
Examples*

o        Provides an overview of two country case examples (**Mexico** and *
***Cuba****), which represent two fundamentally different models of medical
tourism. The article discusses the medical services offered and the effects
the industry has on the overall healthcare system of each respective
country.

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*•        Chapter 6: Exceptional Aspects of the Experiences of Canadian
Medical Tourists from Patient Narratives*

o        This chapter presents five vignettes that bring forth uncommon or
exceptional aspects of particular Canadian medical tourists' experiences in
order to raise questions and offer caveats to the many generalizations and
conspicuous absences that are found in current popular and academic
discussions of how a medical tour unfolds.

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*•        Chapter 7: Out of Canada - A Personal Experience of Bariatric
Surgery*

o        A personal story of a patient battling to sustain weight loss, and
her experience at a ****US**** facility conducting bariatric surgery.

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*•        Chapter 8: Travelling for Healthcare from Canada
          An Overview of Out-of-Country Care Funded by
Provincial/Territorial Health Insurance Plans*

o        This chapter examines Out of Country Care (OOCC) funded by
Canadian provincial/territorial health insurance plans. It specifically
looks at some challenges to the current system and suggests some potential
research questions and general implications of cross-border and OOCC for a
country with a publicly-funded healthcare system.

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*•        Chapter 9: An Introduction to the Ethical Dimensions of
Reproductive Medical Tourism*

o        Analyzes the ethical implications of reproductive medical tourism,
including travel for IVF, ICSI, sex-selection, PGD and maternal surrogacy.

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*•        Chapter 10: The Impact of Trade Treaties on Health Tourism*

o        This chapter examines the extent to which trade agreements can
impact health tourism.

**

*•        Chapter 11: Let's Make a Deal - The Commerce of Medical Tourism.*

This chapter summarizes the author’s first-hand experiences and the issues
presented of a commercial international medical tourism conference.

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*•        Chapter 12: Conclusion - Medical Tourism Today and Tomorrow.*

Closes thebook with a brief summary and some reflections on future
directions.

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