Dr Ruchika is a doctor of Occupational Therapy and a certified practitioner from the US in the field. She has been associated with IndiCure since its inception and brings years of experience of working in the healthcare sector. She has played a key role in making the company what it is today. Dr Ruchika has in-depth knowledge about the medical tourism industry and is passionate about developing quality healthcare facilities in India.
Dr Ruchika in an interaction with Ekta Srivastava, Health Technology. in
Please tell us more about IndiCure? Give us some more in-depth information on its unique business model?
IndiCure is a private limited company started with the aim to provides unique solutions to medical tourists on their visit to India.
The name IndiCure has been taken from the combination of two words- INDIA and CURE symbolizing the growth of health tourism to India.
Counted among the best medical tourism companies in the world in a span of a decade, the company has grown from strength to strength. From a startup in a corner at home to offices in Delhi, Mumbai and New York, IndiCure has come a long way without any external funding.
IndiCure has earned several accolades over the years. This is because of the exceptional care and effort we put in to understand our clients’ requirements and provide them with the best possible solution whether it is a conventional allopathic treatment, Ayurveda treatment or a combination of both.
We have a team of doctors and para medics to understand the client’s requirements and work in close coordination with the chosen few best surgeons and hospitals in India to offer the best possible treatment.
Our uniqueness lies in the services we offer. We provide end to end solution to medical tourists ranging from airport pick up, visa assistance, flight tickets, medical treatment, accommodation, local travel, forex and other concierge services.
Our patients vouch for credibility and trustworthiness and we have thus earned the reputation of being “The Most Trustworthy Medical Tourism Company in India”.
We are also the largest provider of plastic surgery and bariatric surgery tourism to India getting patients from the West- US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, which no other company in India has been doing.
How is the flow of international patients and how good is medical tourism in India? Your suggestion to make India a healthcare destination?
India is among the top 3 medical tourism destinations in the world. The medical tourism market in India is estimated to be about $10.6 billion industry by 2019 according to a report by KPMG besides wellness tourism which is $ 2 billion industry and witnessing a CAGR of 15% annually.
Few suggestions to make India the Top healthcare destination:
- Ease of Visa services
Most of the patients that travel to India often have a complaint that getting visa to India is a very cumbersome procedure. Though the Govt. has taken steps in the direction such as medical visa on arrival, the form is still lengthy and the process not easy.
- Private Public participation to market India as healthcare destination
Both the Govt. and the key stakeholders in the medical tourism industry such as hospitals, Medical Tourism companies should work collectively to promote India as THE best destination for medical tourism.
South Korea is a great example where the Govt. and private players worked hand in glove with each other and within a decade made Korea the biggest Plastic surgery tourism destination.
- Boost to professional medical tourism companies
The Govt. should give tax relief or other forms of incentives to the medical tourism companies and the hospitals to give boost to the sector.
- India’s global Image
India’s image in the West is still that of a poor country with substandard facilities. The Govt. and the other stakeholders should work in the direction of marketing India as a world class healthcare destination and a modern India capable of delivering high standards of care.
Does IndiCure does inbound tourism and inbound tourism?
We do inbound medical tourism only at the moment and cater to all kinds of medical and wellness treatments. This includes serious surgeries such as cancer treatment, heart surgery, organ transplant, bone marrow transplant and elective procedures such as plastic and cosmetic surgery, weight loss surgery, and dental treatment. We also offer non-conventional treatments such as Ayurveda and wellness.
What are Middle Eastern patient’s main priorities and main concerns when traveling for medical treatment?
Priorities:
- Quality of treatment should be good– The main priority of the patient is to be in the best hands. They thus want to travel with a provider who thinks in the best interest of the patient and has the knowhow and the capability to guide the patient to best doctor and hospital in India.
- Cost should be reasonable– Since many patients are not well versed with the language and the country, they sometimes get cheated by the touts. The priority of patients from Middle East thus is to find a provider who is professional whose charges are transparent.
- Female surgeon for female patients- Most female patients wish to get treated by female doctors only and we make sure we offer the services according to their requirements as much as possible.
- Hassle free services- That is again one of their priority, because the patient and his/her loved one is already in a state of stress and when they have to travel abroad for their treatment, situation can be overwhelming. They thus want us to take care of complete arrangements so that they can concentrate on their health and recovery.
Concerns
- Language is a serious concern. Since a lot of patients coming in from the Middle Eastknow only Arabic, they have their apprehensions about how would they deal with people here. However, we have interpreters who are there to help.
- Credibility of the doctor and surgeon- Since health and recovery is their main concern, they definitely want the best healthcare services and the treatment to be done by specialists who are well trained and have the expertise in their area.
- Cost- People want value for money, and that stands good for healthcare services as well. Medical tourists want the lowest possible cost for the medical treatment.
How do you engage your patients and how do patients find you?
Patients find us through the internet. We also have partners in few countries who refer the patients to us.
What are your company’s main goals?
To be the largest and best medical tourism company in the world. We strive to facilitate safe and comfortable healthcare services to medical tourists from across the world and ensure their well-being and quick recovery.
What is your company’s greatest strength and greatest challenge?
Our greatest strength is our dedicated and knowledgeable team. We have a team of medical and allied professionals who know and understand medicine well. This helps us in associating with the right people and delivering the best to our patients.
Greatest challenge we face is India is still considered a developing country and people, especially from the West have their own doubts about coming to India, although those who have been to India and have had their treatment in India can vouch for world class healthcare services.
What are your expectations from the government? Will it transform the healthcare sector?
We definitely want the visa process to be made simpler and easier. Besides, India has a great potential to be the largest exporter of healthcare services- whether in the form of medical tourism or medical transcription or healthcare BPOs.
Govt’s initiatives to promote India and tax breaks would definitely boost the sector.
