Thailand is one of the most famous medical tourism destinations in the world, where public and private hospitals offer a comprehensive range of medical therapies. Problem Statement: Nowadays, people are accepting the idea of medical tourism as a prudent alternative to the medical services provided in several developed countries. Thailand is ranked among the top medical tourism destinations according to Forbes' Top 14 Medical Tourism Destinations by Scope of Care (Reenita Das, 2014).
As a rapid growth of world medical tourism progresses, there are risks involved in the decision-making process of medical travelers that influence patients to plan their trip to visit Thailand for such purposes. What are the influencing factors that influence customers' or patients' preference of hospital in Thailand as a top-of-mind medical tourism destination. The purpose of this research is to determine the influencing factors that influence the attractiveness of Thailand, which lead international medical tourists to choose the hospital or holistic medical centers in Thailand as their medical tourism destination.
Research Scope
Expected Benefit
LITERATURE REVIEW
History of Medical Tourism
One of Thailand's most famous hospitals is Bumrungrad International Hospital, the place for medical tourists where patients from more than 190 countries come to receive medical treatment, with the international patient center with multilingual interpreters and a plane ticket desk. According to Health-tourism.com, JCI was established in 1997 to audit and examine international healthcare facilities to meet international standards due to the rise of healthcare providers around the world. As a result, countries such as India, Singapore and Thailand have become legitimate medical tourism destinations as a result of JCI accreditation.
Based on an article in Health-tourism.com, medical tourism continued its massive growth with as many as 150,000 US citizens traveling to destinations in Asia and Latin America in 2006. Global medical tourists continue to travel overseas to get medical treatment overseas economic savings benefit. As globalization in the healthcare market continues to grow, the medical tourism trend will be a booming industry.
Determinants of Medical Tourism Destinations 1) Cost Effectiveness
- Cost Effectiveness
- JCI Accredited Hospitals/Infrastructure
- Quality of Care
- Physician Training
- Holistic & Alternative Treatment
- Supportive Regulations
- Pre-Post Medication Rehabilitation Opportunity
- Quality of Facilities
- Thai Hospitality
- Fast Medical Attention
One of the most important factors in choosing medical treatment abroad is the cost. According to Table 2, the cost of medical treatment in Thailand is lower than in the USA, Singapore and Malaysia. Singapore is known as one of the richest countries in the world and it may attract medical tourists with more reliable medical services.
Therefore, accredited hospitals with state-of-the-art medical facilities and technologies, as well as the availability of US-educated, board-certified doctors and surgeons abroad, have added more credibility to the medical tourism trend. According to health-tourism (2015), the following is the updated list of the hospitals that are JCI accredited. One of the most famous hospitals, Bumrungrad International Hospital, which is the best facility for global medical tourists, announces that over 200 of its doctors are board certified in the United States.
These are the important aspects of the doctors that contribute to the choice of facilities for different medical tourists around the world (Smith and Forgione, 2008). Providing high quality services to customers is part of Thai culture which consists of friendliness, caring nature and friendly manners of the Thai people (Monica, Yu-Feng, Koichi, Vijak, 2006). 2008, Healthcare programs in some countries, such as the United Kingdom or Canada, may have patients on the waiting list for surgery for more than a year (Runckel, 2007).
The more understanding there is of the factors that influence the attractiveness of medical tourism in Thailand, the better industry partners can implement a competitive strategy to influence customers or medical tourists to come to Thailand, contributing to that of the country. However, research on the key factors contributing to the sector's success has mainly been studied from the patient perspective and not from the provider perspective, which remains limited.
METHODOLOGY
- Research design
- Population and Sampling
- Data collection
- Data analysis
Therefore, the interviews included a total of 15 respondents selected through purposive sampling based on researchers'. There were 5 of 15 respondents from executive populations working for the international marketing department, which included medical practitioners involved in medical treatment activities to provide first-hand experience for the researcher. The research questions were designed to explore, narrow down and identify the main influencing factors for choosing Thailand as the destination for healthcare services.
In-depth interview and conversation technique were adopted as the primary data collection approach, which allowed the researcher to appropriately monitor the conversation and gather information during the interview. Questions addressed factors influencing their decision-making to choose Thailand as a final destination to receive healthcare services, also combining the source of information respondents sought, inclination towards their next trip, and overall satisfaction. The analysis of qualitative research takes place at the time of observation or interviewing and helps the researcher identify the problems and understand the situation.
Data coding techniques were also used to help organize and analyze the data collected during qualitative research. Coding is the process of combining the data for ideas and categories and then marking similar passages of text with a code label so that they can be easily retrieved at a later stage for further comparison. Coding the data makes it easier to search the data, make comparisons and identify patterns that require further investigation (Taylor, C and Gibbs, GR, 2010).
Behaviors, activities and conditions were the main categories to give the identification of the idea or concept, the number of codes derived from the data will represent the ideas and concepts to become more visible. At this stage, re-examining and comparing or contrasting the models would help the researcher to integrate or discover a new dimension of the category in which it helps to justify the conclusions of the research findings.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
Demographic profiles of respondents
Out of the 15 respondents, the highest number of respondents came from the Middle East with a total number of four (26.67%), then Europe with four respondents (26.67%), then East Asia with three respondents (20 %), then Southeast Asia with two respondents (13.33%), then The Americas with one respondent (6.67%) and then Oceania with one respondent (6.67%). The frequency of visits of international medical tourists to Thailand is shown in Table 4.4. There were six respondents (40%) who disclosed that this is their first time visiting the country for medical treatment purposes, while nine respondents (60%) stated that they have been to Thailand before for health care services, so it is considered a return visit.
Research Findings
- Physicians Training
- Quality of Care
- Quality of Facilities and JCI accredited hospitals/infrastructure From the interviews, not many people are aware of Joint Commission
- Fast Medical Attention
I felt at ease due to the professionalism of the doctor and well-trained staff and therefore the language barrier is not a problem here." These statements are consistent with the study by Smith and Forgione, 2008, that one of the most famous hospitals in Thailand, Bumrungrad International Hospital, which is the best facility for global medical tourists, advertises that more than 200 of its. From the interviews, quality of care is praised as one of the most important influencing factors for the choice of hospitals.
Admittedly, quality of care and experienced plastic surgeons were my biggest concerns when I started planning my medical journey. The quality of care is excellent and the medical assistants are friendly and pay as much attention as if I were the only patient.”. This statement is consistent with the study of Jutamas Rerkrujipimol and Ilian Assenov, 2011. Well-trained medical staff and specialists with high-quality technology for treatments are important that medical tourists also take into account the standard and quality of medical treatments.
The above-mentioned experiences shared by patients have proven that in addition to the proven experience of medical specialists, the overall quality of care also plays an important role when looking for a final medical destination, even when it comes to emergencies. These statements are consistent with Erik Cohen's 2008 research, which supported the idea that leading private hospitals in Thailand are reliable in terms of high quality of service and highly qualified doctors. Patients seek reliable quality of service before deciding where to receive the service.
From the interviews, some patients shared experiences with the fast medical assistant provided by a private hospital in Thailand, which is considered one of the attractive factors for the industry. This is the first time I have traveled outside my country for medical reasons and it showed the very professional system that Hospital A has.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Practical Implications
Limitations of the study & Recommendations for future research This research study was designed to gather the data from interviewing
- Future Research Recommendations
A sufficient outcome should be explored from this study if more respondents were allowed to participate in the interview. This research study focuses on the influencing factors influencing the attractiveness of Thai medicine. As a recommendation for future research, a qualitative and qualitative research study method of international patient satisfaction and customer loyalty of medical tourists receiving medical treatment in Thailand would provide a deeper understanding of consumer behavior for the reasons why medical tourists return to Thailand for medical care. services.
Another recommendation is a study of customer perception regarding overall service quality of the different hospitals in Thailand. Different package deals that hotels and airline providers typically offer to medical travelers can also be explored in this study. A future research study on customers' perception of Thailand's brand image as a medical tourism hub in Asia will enable an in-depth knowledge of Thailand's competitive strengths and core competencies that can be used as an advantage for the country to compete in the emerging compete with global medical tourism. industry.
APPENDICES
Appendix A: The interview guide
