Amongst many superlatives in Dubai, the high western standard of its health system at reasonable cost has triggered the demand for medical tourism which has been gaining momentum in the recent years. There are more than 10 state-of-the-art by the Joint Commission International (JCI) accredited hospitals and clinics in Dubai. Billions and billions have been funneled into the medical system of Dubai, thereby attracting highly qualified and western educated personnel.
Unlike in many countries nowadays, Dubai has become the medical hub of the world due to its highly qualified doctors, English speaking personnel, reasonable cost and virtually no waiting time for treatments.
The proverbial Health Care City in the city of Dubai boasts a Harvard Medical School division with superlative medical facilities, granting the city the most prestigious status in health care. Dubai has a plethora of treatments, ranging from basic treatments to more complicated ones such as: cochlear implants, obesity surgery, plastic and cosmetic surgery, cardio surgery etc.
If the English language is not one of your strongest suits, the personnel in Dubai’s hospitals and clinics speak all kinds of languages including German, Russian, Persian, Tagalog, Chinese, Hindi etc.
Currently, Dubai has embarked on a project to build over 10 more hospitals, which will trigger an enormous influx of medical tourists, some 500 thousand a year, which will make the economy skyrocket to almost 3 billion dirhams by 2020. The projects will be completed in two stages, the first of which is due to be completed already in 2016. The personnel will increase by almost 4000 throughout Dubai to accommodate patients from all over the world including the independent states such as Belarus, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
The medical tourists will be granted special visas, the type of which will depend on the required treatment and a range of travel and accommodation packages including visas, accommodation and leisure activities.
For the business the healthcare market in UAE is also very attractive in most of the segments – starting from small specialized clinics all the way to high-tech research centers, mid-size clinics and full scale hospitals.
The Department of Tourism and Economic Development as well as Health Care City and the authority for foreign affairs are convinced that an effort on that scale will transcend and re-invent the standards of the modern health care industry in the near future.
