Medical tourism in general parlance is considered as a recent phenomenon, however the history of Medical Tourism dates back to thousands of years when people used to travel long distances to better their health. There are many examples of medical travellers in history who made trips in distant locations across the globe for treating their disorders and seeking improvements in their health.
Instances of Medical Tourism in history
- Greek pilgrims from Mediterranean travelled to the small region in the Saronic Gulf called as Epidauria. This sanctuary was famous for the healing god Asklepios. Thus, Epidauria emerged as the first original travel destination for medical tourism.
- The early forms of medical tourism comprises of visits to Spa towns and sanatoriums in distant lands. For example, people used to visit spas for treatment of their diseases such as bronchitis, gout or liver disorders. These spas are source of mineral waters which have health giving properties.
- Another instance of medical tourism is exhibited by ancient Mesopotamians who used to travel to Tell Brak, Syria for visiting temple of a healing god or goddess for the cure and treatment of eye disorders. It is proved by the archaeological evidence from the third millennium B.C.
- Greeks and Romans used to travel via land or water ways to spas and cult centres around the Mediterranean region for treatment of their diseases. Some of the finest health centres of the world were the Asclepia Temples. These temples were built in the honour of the Greek god of medicine.
- The pilgrims used to spend many nights in the temple only in the hope that they would be given diagnosis or treatment by Asclepios in their dreams.
- As per the archaeological evidences of 16th and 17th centuries, some of the major destinations of European people for the treatment of their diseases were spa towns including St. Moritz and Bath.
- Most of the patients in ancient time went to spas looking for healing waters or to temples seeking the kindness of the gods for curing the common ailments prevailing at that time such as blindness, bronchitis, paralysis, syphilis, gonorrhoea, rheumatism, etc.
- India has the rich tradition of using Ayurvedic healing and Yoga therapies for curing diseases. Patients from all over the world used to come to India for getting Ayurvedic treatment and learning Yoga for better and healthy living.
As compared to medical tourism in ancient times, modern medical tourism started for the treatment for more complex and serious kinds of surgeries such as dental surgery, cosmetic surgery and other surgeries. It began in the 80s and 90s when patients started to look for more affordable options in foreign countries.
The basic driving factors of the Modern medical tourism includes high cost of medical care in developed countries like US, UK, Canada, etc; advancements in information technology, long wait times for certain procedures and the ease and affordability of international travel.
