The combination of medicine and tourism is a relatively new type of tourism which records high growth rates, and today the market value of medical tourism is more than 60 billion dollars. The growth trend will continue in the future, and on it's decrease can only effect the lack of capacity, and in no way decrease in demand. According to data of the UNWTO, 2,5% of all international travel relates to medical tourism, and predictions are that by the year 2010 the number will amount over 50 million travelers per year just for health reasons. According to McKinsey & Company Ltd. market growth estimates are going from about 20-25% annually, and the expected revenue from medical tourism is estimated in the next two years at more than 100 billion dollars.

Unyielding world market demand growth for the medical tourism generates the crisis in healthcare systems in the developed countries, high prices of medical services, long waiting lists and global trends of the population aging.

  

A key factor in choosing a destination, except the cost, is the standard of medical services, high expertise and equipment of hospitals that deal with these types of services and the attractiveness of the location in the tourist sense.

Tourist attractiveness of Croatia, especially its coastal area, is unquestionable, but what is indisputable is that the Croatian healthcare system has the high-quality medical staff, which forms the basis for competitive advantages of Croatia in providing services in medical tourism. On that basis arised the idea on the medical tourism development in Croatia.

Medical tourism - trends and figures

Medical tourism is a comprehensive term used for a whole range of activities from wellness and spa treatments to all types of cosmetic and most complicated operations including, for example, heart transplantation.

The total market value of medical tourism is now 60 billion dollars with 50 million trips by the year 2010 and more than 100 billion dollars of expected annual revenue.

• The estimated market growth of these services is from 20 to 25% annually due to world population aging.


• In the structure of current total volume of medical tourism, 41% goes to the dental services, 40% to orthopedics, cardiology, cardiac surgeon and neurosurgery, and 19% to cosmetic surgery.


• In 2007 Americans spent 17 billion dollars on healthcare services outside the USA.


• The main factor on the market are Asian countries - India, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines, who according to estimates in 2007 accrued an income in the amount of 3,4 billion dollars and they hold 12,7% of the world market.


• In North America are Mexico and Cuba, in Latin America Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina and Colombia, and in Africa South Africa and Egypt.


• In Europe: Hungary, Poland, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland.


• The entrance of the new providers to the market is significant, such as the new Asian countries, Korea, China, Libya, Iran, countries of the Caribbean area and South America focused primarily on the USA market.


• The interface of official medicine with traditional techniques and treatment methods is also noted.


• It comes to the further strengthening and development of multinational hospitals (corporations) as the service providers, who guided by expense efficiency invest in the development of services in the Third World Countries.


• There is an increasing number of users from rich new markets such as Russia and Arab states, who have enough funds, so the price is not a limiting factor, which unquestionably leads to specialization in "exclusivity".


• It is to expect the inclusion of insurance companies in medical tourism offer with a note that the limiting factors are the risk of continuing care and the risk of liability for unprofessional treatment.


• We can recognize the possibility that even the governments of individual countries outsource health services, ie that they expend a part of their health budget in the Third Countries.


• Taking into account that Croatian healthcare system has a top medical staff and the attractiveness of destination, within the Medical Group Ltd. and its founders Miljenko Bura, Ph.D and Goran Nedoklan, has been made a strategy with several possible models of development and investment in the Medical Tourism Centres in Croatia, customizable depending on the size of the place, the existing medical and tourist facilities and enviroment and market features in which such centers would be developed. The strategy includes in the implementation phase all interested partners and investors, from local communities to international companies that have already expressed their interest in the partnership for the project.