The political economy of medical tourism in Turkey

Abstract

This thesis offers an explanation on the growth of medical tourism in Turkey. Along with the driving forces that created the ground upon which medical tourism industry could serve as an alternative, the thesis focuses on the role of the states in the creation and maintenance of the medical tourism market. The emergence of medical tourism in Turkey has developed in parallel with cultural and economic globalization and transformation in healthcare systems. Economic and cultural globalization has enabled the ways in which movement of health personnel, international patients and medical devices have become easier. The transformation in healthcare systems has changed the scope of health as a welfare service. As First World countries strive to reduce their health budgets, medical tourism centers in developing countries constitute themselves as an alternative. Within this process, rather than retreating, the state has maintained its active role in regulating and monitoring of the markets. Alongside other actors such as private mechanisms and the NGOs, the state has become prominent in the growth of medical tourism in Turkey. The Health Transformation Program, initiated in 2003, enabled the institutionalization of the industry. The governance and partial finance of medical tourism is carried out by government agencies whereas the provision of health services is mostly performed by private hospitals. Although it is viewed as a blessing to the economy, what kind of effects it has on the national health systems will emerge in the near future.