When a man suffering from kidney
transplant complications walked into Dr Jeffrey Saltzman's
office a few years back, nothing seemed out of the ordinary
at first. But one thing quickly became apparent to the
Toronto kidney transplant specialist: the patient, who'd
travelled to his native India for the operation, had been
duped. "He had a six-inch scar on his abdomen and had
been given anti-rejection drugs," says Dr Saltzman, "but
he never had the operation."
Medical tourism is fast becoming
a global, multi-billion-dollar industry and Canadians,
among many others, are hopping the bandwagon in hopes
of cheaper or faster surgery — often with dire
consequences.
Why are patients risking their
health and flying to countries like India, Lithuania,
Thailand, Hungary, South Africa and Malaysia for surgery?
The reasons are as varied as the ailments they're being
treated for. Many Americans and Britons are wooed by
procedures that cost up to a tenth of what they'd pay
privately at home. Some people from poor countries like
Bangladesh seek treatments from their neighbours because
they aren't available at home. Others simply want to
combine a tropical vacation with elective surgery. But
for Canadians, it's all about waiting times.
TIRED
OF WAITING
And one of the biggest waiting games in town is organ
donation. According to Health Canada, more than 3,500
Canadians are currently waiting for an organ transplant
and every year nearly 150 die waiting. Donation levels
in Canada are so abysmal that many desperate patients
are choosing to take the risks and go abroad.
At present, no one's tracking the
numbers of Canadians seeking medical treatment overseas
so it's difficult to gauge the impact. But one thing's
sure: they're often not aware of what they're getting
themselves into. Many of the countries involved in this
business have weak malpractice laws so there's little
opportunity for recourse should anything go wrong. Since
followup care is minimal, patients must deal with any
complications or side effects on their return home.
"Depending on the country's medical
system, you could come back with hepatitis or HIV, and
end up worse than when you left," says Bill Barrable,
head of the BC Transplant Society. He says that participants
are not only endangering themselves, but they're also
contributing to the growth of the organ black market.
"In the end, it allows us to avoid improving our organ
donor supply in our own country," he says. "It allows
us to not have to be accountable for that, and that's
not acceptable."
Mr Barrable would like the Canadian
government to make the buying and selling of organs
a criminal offence. "Right now it's a summary conviction,
so it's just a big parking ticket." Dr Saltzman suggests
that we also need to financially support living donors
who take time off work for surgery. "There's a lot of
lost time and income for the donors," he says, "but
there's nothing in the government legislation that allows
for compensation so that donors come out with neutral
revenue rather than in debt."
MEDICAL
HOLIDAY
Despite the risks and ethical quagmires of medical tourism,
wealthy Westerners continue to answer to the call of
exotic medical treatment — with a few perks thrown
in for good measure. Many medical tourism companies
offer individuals treatment packages that include their
flight, hotel accommodation, treatment and often a post-operative
vacation. The website of Lithuanian International Medical
Services advertises cosmetic procedures that cost 25%
to 65% of what they would in the US, and the patient
can recuperate in "one of Lithuania's beautiful resorts
on the Baltic Sea." South Africa's Surgical Attractions
blends its full complement of cosmetic procedures with
bush safaris, fly-fishing, birding and rounds of golf.
Who could resist?
|
