Why Turkey

Turkey has always been known for its scenic beauty and cultural history. But since more than 10 years now, it has also been gaining prominence as a medical tourism destination.

Turkey is also well-connected to important cities across the world like London, Chicago, New York, and the like. Turkey has become a major player in the cosmetic surgery market.

With many cost prices a fraction of those from UK clinics, Turkey offers choice and good standards of care at very affordable prices. Many patients also look forward to visiting a region that has been popular with sun worshippers and tourists for decades.

Patients are heading to Turkey for common and specialist plastic cosmetic surgery treatments, from the ever-popular breast and nose surgeries, to newer treatments like fat transfer, hair transplant, and new developments in liposuction and aesthetics.

Tourism itself is important for many countries in the world with regards to formation of GDP, creating new jobs and benefiting the economy. However, health tourism is now popular as a relatively new type of tourism. It plays an important role in the development of sustainable tourism by reducing seasonality and diversifying tourism services as a whole. In recent years, there has been a rapid growth in the medical services market and related international trade in the world.

Turkey is one of the countries with high competitiveness in this market and has the ability to increase its market volume as it provides better service quality, well-equipped hospitals, geographical location and large comparative cost advantage.

Improved services with cutting-edge technology, competent experts and affordable prices have recently made Turkey an attractive destination among world citizens who are seeking treatment. The country has achieved significant momentum in health care tourism, offering a wide array of services and generating revenue. Having hosted 1 million people for health tourism purposes, Turkish health care professionals, focusing on the tourism aspect of the sector, now aim to welcome 2 million people in the upcoming years. Turkey is aiming to bring in $20 billion to $25 billion in health tourism revenue in the upcoming years1.

Turkey has a comprehensive range of medical services. Low cost treatments like IVF, CyberKnife for cancer treatment, cardiac surgery, orthopaedic surgery, and more are available in Turkey, with no wait times involved. The difference in cost between medical treatment in the UK and that in Turkey is between 40-50%1. Turkey is in a very competitive position in terms of the price of health care services compared to the US and Europe.

Additionally, Turkish doctors are highly qualified, and the private hospitals are top-notch. More than 10 first-class hospitals have been accredited by the JCI while more are in the line. Medical tourism in Turkey is popular because of quality that matches European hospitals and the incredibly low cost of medical treatment. The table below shows the cost of medical procedures and saving rates in Turkey and the United Kingdom.