Ιατρικός τουρισμός & πιστοποίηση μονάδων υγείας
Medical tourism & certification of health facilities
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Υγεία ; Ιατρικός τουρισμός ; ΠιστοποίησηAbstract
Medical tourism is an ever-growing economic activity in the world. Whether for medical reasons or for reasons of well-being, the emerging demand is rising every year. Greece is undoubtedly in the context of its effort to revitalize, under the current economic crisis, to develop strategic goals and to learn from practices in other areas. According to the existing literature, there is a relative confusion about the terms "health tourism", "medical tourism", "spa tourism", "healing", "healing tourism", "wellness tourism". Medical tourism includes plastic surgery, dentistry, ophthalmology, cardiology, orthopedics, cancer treatment, kidney care and organ transplants. There is no reliable data on the size of the medical tourism market. Estimates vary widely among leading global research companies. The present thesis presents the key aspects of this form of tourism, giving particular weight to the stakeholders involved in the process, starting from the facilitators and reaching even the clinical certification bodies. It also discusses all the risks involved in such an activity, both for the host country and for the patients visiting it. Regarding the issue of patients; mobility, it is forbidden in several cases, especially if the surgery is serious, so returning home is a difficult process. It is the responsibility of patients to be properly informed and aware of their rights and obligations in relation to the medical destination they are going to visit. In addition to the dangers faced by patients, host countries are also facing handicaps due to medical tourism, perhaps higher costs for the development of relevant infrastructure (facilities, equipment, staff), which in most cases removes funds from other sectors.