Surgery in Mexico is a rapidly growing business with more than a million patients visiting from the US alone each year. However, due to reports of malpractice in mainstream newspapers there is still concern amongst the mass majority of people. Yet statistics show that surgery in Mexico is far safer than medical treatment in the US.
The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published a report that medical negligence in the US kills around 200,000 patients a year and is the third leading cause of death behind heart disease and cancer. In 2012, over $3 billion was paid out in malpractice lawsuits – and only one in five cases actually pays out!
In comparison a paper published by NCIB shows that only 14, 968 claims were taken to arbitration in Mexico. The same research showed that 97% of patients and medical practitioners said the service and care is excellent. And in the last decade medical facilities in Mexico have improved even more.
Mexico is a third world country
When you consider these statistics it is clear to see that mainstream media has an overwhelming influence on the way people think. Just because the US is considered a developed country, people automatically assume the standard of health care is better quality. Yet, the statistics show the US has one of the worst health care systems in the world. The NHS in the UK also has a high rate of medical negligence.
The perception is that because Mexico is considered a third world country the facilities and equipment will not match those found in the US. Wrong on both accounts! Mexico boasts a world-class medical infrastructure that is just as advanced in medical care as the US, uses state-of-the-art equipment and has the tenth largest economy in the world!
Standard of medical care in Mexico
Medical care in Mexico is overseen by the Joint Commission International (JCI) who represent US insurance companies and are responsible for ensuring that standards of medical facilities, equipment, ability of surgeons and medical staff, together with the level of aftercare meets international standards. The commission has given rave reviews about the high-quality of surgery in Mexico.
Aftercare following surgery in Mexico
The aftercare treatment is something that the organizers of medical tourism take very seriously. Once a patient has undergone surgery in Mexico they are given full instructions of what they can and cannot do to look after themselves well. They are also visited on a daily basis by the doctor and again in the afternoon by a nurse. Aftercare is included in the medical travel package. In comparison, when you undergo routine surgery in the North America you do not receive any aftercare at all.
No health insurance
Regardless of where you receive your medical treatment, one of the major concerns is whether you can get insurance just in case anything goes wrong. Up until recently, insurance companies in the US did not cover patients for medical treatment overseas, but given the emergence of medical travel employers and insurers have begun schemes to insure Americans travelling to Mexico for medical care.
Never believe what you read in mainstream newspapers as the media is designed to protect the politics and economy of their own country whilst trying to ensure their own people there is no better place in the word to receive medical treatment. However, when you consider the statistics and accounts from people with personal experience an overwhelming number of patients say they prefer to have surgery in Mexico rather than in the United States or Canada.
Sources http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1188117/
