PAKISTAN is implementing a connected set of visa, insurance, equipment, and payment policies to position the country as a destination for international patients, with a single national portal under development to manage the entire patient journey, the 3rd International Conference on Medical Tourism and Healthcare Accreditation was told last week, as per a press release.
Speaking at the conference panel discussion, Prof Dr Farhan Essa Abdullah, Chairman of Dr Essa Health Services (Pvt) Ltd and a member of the National Health Tourism Working Group constituted by the Federal MinistryofInter-ProvincialCoordination, said policy work now extends weII beyond the incoming patient.
‘Visa policy is being made, and not only for patients,’ he said. ‘Policy is being made for hospitals. For doctors who are willing to come to Pakistan, along with their technicians, to conduct treatments here. For the medical equipment they bring with them. And insurance companies are coming to Pakistan,’ he said.
The conference was held at the Karachi Expo Centre as part of the 23rd Health Asia International Exhibition and Conferences, organised by Health Asia in collaboration with the Pakistan Health Travel Council and supported by the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination. Dr Essa Health Services (Pvt) Ltd participated as a conference co-sponsor.
Speakers noted that Gulf states spend more than $15bn each year on outbound medical travel, and that procedure costs in Pakistan run 50 to 70 per cent below comparable markets.