Photo of Health City Cayman Islands courtesy of Health City Cayman Islands Facebook page

Medical tourism is quickly becoming a growing trend among Canadian travellers. The act of traveling internationally, often to Mexico, the Caribbean and Asia, to seek medical solutions, has long been a popular way for Americans to defray the high cost of medical procedures.

While Canadians do not deal with the same healthcare costs as Americans, some are becoming increasingly frustrated with growing wait times, especially when it comes to consulting with a specialist. For some—more than one per cent of the population—the answer is to seek solutions in foreign lands.

In 2014, more than 50,000 Canadians were estimated to have received non-emergency medical care outside of Canada, according to the Leaving Canada for Medical Care report the Fraser Institute. And the number is growing. In just a year, Canadians travelling for medical treatments abroad have increased by more than 26 per cent.

This may be, suggests the report, because Canadians can expect to wait 9.8 weeks for medical treatment after seeing a specialist. (A number that does not reflect the 8.5-week average to see the specialist to begin with.)

Health City Cayman Islands Opens Canada Office

Capitalizing on the growing trend, Health City Cayman Islands has opened an office in Hamilton, Ont. to help patients in Ontario and Québec identify alternative treatment options.

The office is an overseas branch office for Health City Cayman Islands, which opened in 2014. Since its opening, the facility has treated thousands of patients, including hundreds from North America.

"While we are known for our expertise in cardiac surgery, we also have outstanding surgeons in high-need areas such as orthopaedic and bariatric procedures," said Dr. Chandy Abraham, CEO and Head of Medical Services at Health City Cayman Islands. "We have the capacity, the skills and the facilities to treat patients from Canada and around the globe," he added.

It also can’t hurt that patients are recuperating in a tropical setting in the midst of a British Commonwealth.

Health City Cayman Islands was founded by Dr. Devi Shetty, best known as the personal physician of the late Mother Teresa, in partnership with U.S.-based, Catholic health system, Ascension. The Caribbean hospital prides itself on providing free care to children living in poverty.

Health City's Canadian office will assist potential patients by answering questions about the Caribbean hospital. Additionally it will coordinate consultations between home-care physicians and specialists located at Health City Cayman Islands and also connect returning patients with Canadian healthcare providers to ensure continuity of care. Specialists will also be on hand to assist with travel arrangements and to provide translation services where necessary. 

For more information, visit www.healthcitycanada.ca. For Canadians travelling abroad, the Government of Canada offers these tips to receiving medical care in other countries. 

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