India Has Become Cost-Effective Medical Tourism Destination: Union Minister
New Delhi [India] : Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh on Saturday said that in the last 9 years, India has turned into a cost-effective medical tourism destination and this has been possible because of several pathbreaking healthcare reforms and enabling provisions brought in by Prime Minister Narendra Modi ever since he took over in 2014.
Addressing the inaugural session of the 42nd annual conference of the National Medicos Organisation (NMO) organised at AIIMS Kalyani, West Bengal by NMO, Jitendra Singh said that previously India was hardly known for any preventive healthcare but today India is recognised as the vaccination hub of the world. He also said that Medical organisations can collaborate with the government for ensuring last-mile delivery of healthcare. Jitendra Singh said that today we can evidently see patients from several other countries including Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and even European countries coming over to leading hospitals including government hospitals in India for treatment. All of them have gone back satisfied because the treatment provided to them is world-class as India has all the medical facilities available as is present anywhere else in the world and at a much cheaper cost, he said.
The Minister said that With the coming of antibiotics, more or less the communication diseases got conquered. The new lifestyles diseases started to be more prominent be it diabetes, heart attack, and cholesterol along with the increase in lifespan of the average Indian. But the diseases of old age also got introduced into the large spectrum of diseases confronted by India, he said.
The Minister said that the number of old age people in the country is increasing. Pensioners outnumber the serving employees. Because of this, diseases of old age are also increasing.
Another big challenge the country is facing today is the diseases of old age affecting the middle and young age groups. The Minister said that it is pertinent that we address these metabolic disorders because India is moving forward rapidly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hence we have to protect the potential and energy of our youth, he added.
It is in such circumstances that the role of organisations like NMO becomes important. Lifestyle diseases have social, cultural factors, they are also related to food habits and lifestyle. So because of this, we can’t leave it just to the doctors, everyone has to contribute.
Indians have a mixed lifestyle as we are still evolving and trying to modernise, that’s an added challenge as culturally, socially and personally. In this light also collaborations with organisations like NMO gains significance, he said.
Talking about the theme of the conference ‘Our health, our nature, our culture’, Dr Jitendra Singh said that it is very much in tune with the requirement of India in the 21st century. He said that Prime Minister had given us the mantra ‘LiFE’ for the environment. Following this vision in the last 9 years under the leadership of the Prime Minister, healthcare has been given top priority by the government, he added.