Korea Healing Center

The good effects of nature on human health are already widely known. The benefits of phytoncide and anions, which represent the healing power of forests, have also been validated enough, and related research is still ongoing. There is no doubt that the ocean and forest, with a rich repository of energy, treat our bodies distressed by urban life.

Data Analysis

In total, 336 completed questionnaires were collected; of these 13 incomplete cases in which respondents had not answered several parts of the questionnaire were excluded from the analysis. Therefore, from a total of approximately 2,300 emails sent to prospective tourists inviting them to complete the online survey, 323 valid completed questionnaires were returned, which resulted in a response rate of 14.04%. The 14.04% response rate is considered acceptable as no incentive was offered to respondents. Normally, consumer survey with no incentive offered to respondents yields lower than 10% response rate while the response rate with consumer survey with incentives and follow ups can be as high as 26.54% (People Pulse, 2010).

Profile of Respondents

The demographic characteristics of respondents were assessed in terms of gender, age, and marital status, country of residence, income, education, employment, and purposes of medical visit. Table 1 presents a summary of the demographic characteristics of the final sample respondents.

Table 4.1: Demographic Profile of Respondents

Demographic RespondentsNumber of RespondentsProportion of sample
Male
Female
145
165
46.8%
53.2%
18-30 years old
31-40 years old
41-50 years old
51-60 years old
61-70 years old
71 years and older
62
116
80
38
13
1
20.0%
37.4%
25.8%
12.3%
4.2%
0.3%
Single
Married
Cohabiting
Divorced
Widowed
Separated
134
127
17
17
10
5
43.2%
41.0%
5.5%
5.5%
3.2%
1.6%
Australia
United Arab of Emirates
United States of America
United Kingdom
Hong Kong
Singapore
Other
53
52
32
31
28
18
96
17.1%
16.8%
10.3%
10.0%
9.0%
5.8%
31.1%
USD$10,000 or less
USD$10,001-30,000
USD$30,001-60,000
USD$60,001-100,000
USD$100,001-200,000
More than USD$200,001
28
62
129
53
25
13
9.0%
20.0%
41.6%
17.1%
8.1%
4.2%
Educated up to and including high school
College Diploma
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Doctorate
21
46
125
100
18
6.8%
14.8%
40.3%
32.3%
5.8%
Corporate firm employee
Business owner
Freelance professional
Employed with temporary contract
Unemployed
Other
124
65
29
28
11
53
40.0%
21.0%
9.4%
9.0%
3.5%
17.1%
*It is apparent that there were slightly more female respondents (53.2%) than male respondents.
*The largest group of respondents were 31-40 years of age (37.4%) followed by those who were aged 41-50 years (25,8%) and those aged 18-30 years (20.00%). The relative under-representation of older respondents is probably explained by the online nature of the survey.
*In terms of marital status, single respondents represented the largest group (43.2%), closely followed by married respondents (41%).
*In terms of country of origin, 17% of respondents were from Australia, followed by the United Arab of emirates (16.8%), United States of America (10.3%), United Kingdom (10.0%), Hong Kong (9%), and Singapore (5.8%). The remainder of the sample (31.1%) chose the option other indicating one or more countries.
*Most of respondents (approximately 60% in all) were in either the upper-middle socio-economic stratum (with 41.6% of respondents earning USD$30,001-60,000 annually) or the lower middle socio-economic stratum (with 20% earning USD$10,001-30,000 annually). Another 17.1% of respondents had an annual income of USD$60,001-100,000.
*Most respondents were well educated, with 40.3% having obtained a bachelor’s degree and 32.3% having a master’s degree. In terms of employment status, 40% of respondents were employed full-time by corporate firms, whereas 21% owned business.

Table 4.2 summarizes the respondents’ objectives in travelling abroad for medical reasons. Respondents were asked to choose one or more alternatives that applied to their situation. Because they were allowed to state more than one objective, the total number of answers is thus greater than the number of respondents (377 answers; 122.8% of valid cases).

Table 4.2: Objective(s) of travelling abroad for medical reasons

Objective of travelling AbroadNumberProportion of responsesProportion of cases
To cure an illness10628.1%34.5%
For cosmetic surgery9625.5%31.3%
For medical check up9424.9%30.6%
To improve health 818121.5%26.4%
Total377100.0%122.8%
*It is apparent from Table 4.2 that the largest group of respondents were interested in curing their illnesses (28.1% of response), followed by cosmetic surgery (25.5), and medical check-ups (24.9%). The last-reported alternative was health improvement (21.5%).

Results and Analysis

An open-ended question invited respondents to name as many medical tourism destinations of which they were currently aware. Table 4.3 shows the destinations that were named by respondents on first, second, third, and fourth recalls.

Table 4.3: Medical Tourism Destinations of Which Respondents were Aware

DestinationsFirst recallSecond recallThird recallFourth recallTotal
Korea1385192200
Thailand432315283
Singapore22234049
USA and Canada2185135
Eastern Europe1864028
Malaysia17164239
India1071018
Europe and UK7153328
Latin America681015
Others28286062
Total3101855210557
*Table 4.3 shows that Korea was the best-known medical tourism destination (200 recalls), followed by Thailand (83 calls), Singapore (49 recalls), Malaysia (39 recalls), and the USA and Canada (35 recalls). However, according to Woodside and Lysonski (1989), the first recall on an unaided basis tends to exert a strong influence on intention to visit. Therefore, Korea, which had the largest number of first recalls (138), should be more likely to be chosen as final medical tourism destination.

Table 4.4: Factors that Influence of Motivation of Individuals to Engage in Medical Tourism

Dependent VariableIndependent variablesTest statisticResult
Motivation to engage in medical tourismAttitudes towards cost of medical care in home country (log transformed)Pearson correlationSignificant negative correlation (Pearson r=-0.267; p=0.00)
Availability of treatment in home countryANOVAInsignificant effect [F(2,3070=0.297; p=0.744]
*As shown in Table 4.3 a significant negative correlation was found between the two variables (Pearson r = -0.267; p=0.00). It is apparent that negative attitudes towards costs of medical care in the home country (that is, an opinion that the cost of medical care is too high) were associated with a greater motivation to engage in medical tourism. Research statement 1 was thus confirmed.

As shown in Table 4.3 and 4.4, no significant difference was found in the level of motivation to engage in medical tourism between respondents in different situations with regard to the availability of medical treatment in the home country F(2,307) = 0.297; p=0.774 (>0.05). Research statement 2 was therefore rejected.

Table 4.5: ANOVA of availability of desired medical treatment and motivation to engage in medical tourism

Availability/MotivationMeanStandard deviationLevene’s statisticF statistic
F (2,307)=1.657; p=0.182F (2,307) = 0.297, p=0.774
Available5.50890.8255
Not available5.56000.8843
Do not know5.41670.9964
*Table 4.6 shows the mean scores and standard deviations that involved consideration of medical tourism destination attributes.

Table 4.6: Medical Tourism Destination Attributes

Destination AttributesMean scoreStandard deviation
Quality of care5.61280.7715
Saving potential5.53950.9097
Hygiene issues5.53720.7914
Safety and security issues5.13900.8716
Accessibility4.94461.0862
Tourism opportunities4.04061.1811
*It is apparent from table 4.6 that quality of care was the most important attribute (mean = 5.6128; SD = 0.7715), followed by saving potential (mean = 5.5395; SD = 0.9097), hygiene issues (mean = 5.5372; SD = 0.7914), and safety and security issues (mean = 5.1390; SD = 0.8716). The two least-important attributes were accessibility (mean = 4.9446; SD = 1.0862) and tourism opportunities (mean = 4.0406, SD = 1.811).

*Given that hygiene, safety, and security are indirectly related to quality of care, these findings demonstrate that the respondents placed more importance on issues related to quality of care and saving potential, while being less concentrated about accessibility and tourism opportunities. Research statement 3 was thus confirmed.

Table 4.7: Correlations between Destinations Attributes

Destination attributesIntention to visit KoreaIntention to visit SingaporeIntention to visit MalaysiaIntention to visit Thailand
Quality of careSpearman’s rho=0.017; p=0.771Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=0.142; p=0.012Spearman’s rho=0.075; p=0.186
Saving potentialSpearman’s rho=0.140; p=0.014Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=0.091; p=0.112Spearman’s rho=-0.105; p=0.017
Safety and securitySpearman’s rho=0.058; p=0.309Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=0.057; p=0.317Spearman’s rho=0.075; p=0.187
Hygiene issuesSpearman’s rho=0.025; p=0.666Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=-0.144; p=0.011Spearman’s rho=0.023; p=0.691
Tourism opportunitiesSpearman’s rho=0.148; p=0.013Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=0.085; p=0.153Spearman’s rho=0.030; p=0.622
AccessibilitySpearman’s rho=0.090; p=0.112Pearson’s r=0.031; p=0.059Spearman’s rho=-0.088; p=0.060Spearman’s rho=0.047; p=0.409
*The research statement 4 which had proposed that potential for cost saving is a compensatory rule; that is prospective medical tourists are willing to sacrifice certain attributes for cost saving) involved consideration of: (i) saving potential; and (ii) intention to visit Korea or its three completing medical tourism destinations. Although all of these were interval measurement, intentions to visit Korea, Malaysia, or Singapore failed to satisfy the assumption of normality. Spearman’s rho was therefore chosen test the correlation between saving potential and intention the three destinations (Aron and Aron, 1997, Levin and Rubin, 1991). In the case of intention to visit Singapore, which did satisfy the assumption of normality, the correlation was tested by Pearson product-moment correlation(Levin and Tubin, Manning and Munro, 2007).

*As previously noted, Table 4.7 showed that a significant positive correlation existed between saving potential and intention to visit Korea (Spearman’s rho = 0.140, p<0.05). A significant negative correlation was also apparent between saving potential and intention to visit Thailand (Spearman’s rho = -0.105, p=<0.05). In the case of intention to visit Singapore or intention to visit India, there was no significant correlation between saving potential and intention to visit.

Data Analysis Conclusion

These findings suggest that prospective tourists who were more price-sensitive were more likely to perceive Korea as an appealing medical tourism destination, but less likely to perceive Thailand as an appealing destination. These respondents would appear to be willing to sacrifice certain attributes of their medical vacation in the interests of greater saving potential, while avoiding destinations that are to be expensive. Research statement 4 was thus confirmed. This comparative outcome for Thailand and Korea can apply to the current feasibility to build the medical industry of Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

It is expected to be bring long term economical benefits to the home country and to the medical tourists. This project is initiated with the expectation of incremental growth year on year basis together with a significant expansion strategy. Thus, it is expected that this project will have a significant positive contribution towards the GDP of the home country. Increasing demand for cosmetic surgeries and medical education is the key reason for this project to be initiated. Credibility and potential of this project can be further supported by the expected future growth of this industry as per the statistics. As a result, many investors at angle investment level are keen to provide financial support for these projects.

School of Medicine

In order for hospitals to function on a consistent operational level, it requires a regular rotation of a highly trained professional faculty, development of medical practices and medicines, and labor force of educated practitioners (Sim, 2012). In order to establish an international hospital and international school of Medicine, English training is a key step in the process. All doctors and nurses should be able to understand English when they deal with international patients. In Thailand, most hospitals that provide such treatments ensure that the doctors converse in English. Most Thai hospitals also have interpreters who can converse in 15 different languages as well (Wilson, 2013). At the beginning, we will bring the faculty members and necessary experts in the industry to initiate the business. The initial phase of the business plan is to transfer the knowledge and experience to the hospital and school of medicine. Once the hospital is established, CIU’s networks will bring the patients and clients from Korea and other countries providing the same medical treatment delivered in Korea. Of course, the patients will pay medical fees lower than what they would have to pay in Korea, but they would pay more than the standard local rate. For local patients, they would usually go out of the country to get such a treatment, but with the international hospital in place, they would choose to have their treatment in their local area, Laos, instead of another country.

The Medical Council and plastic surgeons will strive to become a medical and surgical hub of Asia and promote Thailand for a move that they believe could earn as much as $8.3 billion a year. The demand for cosmetic surgery has increased rapidly worldwide, particularly in the United States, Europe and Asia. In Asia, China has the highest number of people undergoing cosmetic surgery, followed by Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Rhinoplasty (“nose jobs”) and double-eyelid surgery top the list of desired operations (AsiaOne, 2013). Instead of going to Thailand, many foreigners will visit Laos to undergo aesthetic surgery.

This business plan will involve a cosmetic surgery-and-tourism package which will include
airfare, cosmetic surgical treatments, luxury accommodation, etc. At first, the hospital will invite the faculty members and doctors from Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia to train the local Laos doctors and students and to provide the best surgical treatments. Korea has the largest number of tourists who come to get their cosmetic surgeries done. In the year 2009 the number of tourists ranged around 60,000, which then increased to 412,889 by the year 2017. With almost 28% of the medical tourists visiting Korea are for plastic and cosmetic surgeries, Korea was able to earn around $3,700 per patient (beautiquekorea, 2014).

The hospital and the medical school will propose to form the international Medical Tourism Association (MTA) to promote Laos as a medical hub. The hospital and medical school will work together with MTA facilitating the medical services for foreign patients while they are in Laos. For reference, Thailand earns over $5 billion a year from medical tourism, out of which $1 billion of which goes to private hospitals and clinics providing medical treatment to foreign patients (AsiaOne, 2013). Studies show that the cosmetic surgery and procedure industry in Asia Pacific is expected to witness the fastest growth over the next decade, owing to the growing medical tourism, improving healthcare infrastructure, and availability of high-quality services (Grandviewresearch.com, 2017). Also, in the UK, the cosmetic surgery industry is worth $4.5 billion (BBC Three, 2017). Specialists estimate, continued and stable growth in

cosmetic surgery procedures worldwide, with a 8.9% growth by the year 2020 (Malay Mail, 2017). The market was worth $8.5 billion 2016, could be worth up to $9.2 billion by the year 2020 (Malay Mail, 2017). This explains the demand for the industry and implementing the idea would result in a good expansion. If the government fully supports the effort for turning Laos into an Asian medical and surgical hub, the country could earn up to $3 billion (50% of that of Thailand) annually within the next five years as Thai cosmetic doctors project $6.5 billion per year revenue.

Many local Thailand clinics have become agents for South Korean hospitals and many Thai youngsters undergo surgery in South Korea due to the popularity of Korean Youth culture. In future, these Thai youngsters who visit Korea to get their treatments done can come to Laos to get the same treatment that they would get in Korea for a fraction of the cost.

It would be a violation of the law if clinics and private hospitals invite physicians from countries like South Korea to provide cosmetic surgery to local patients. Hence, a training will be provided by these experts from Korea for the local practitioners. This will allow the local doctors to be capable of doing the same surgery in a short period of time. This then becomes an opportunity for Laos to become an international medical hub for the patients in Asia. The School of Medicine in Laos will provide and meet sufficient needs of hospitals required above and will function as a platform for international practices and studies of medicine in East andSoutheast Asia. CIU has an international standard course material that will allow students  from different countries to study the specialized fields of medicines and complete their licenses in different countries. While previous traditional medical schools required longer years of study in one institution and high tuition fees to support the education, CIU provides a network of International universities that students can transfer to in their final years of education to complete their medical licenses. Laos School of Medicine will reduce the costs and time for students to become a internationally licensed medical practitioner on a level where not only the privileged have the rights for education in the field of medical practices.

WE’VE SEEN GROWTH ACROSS ALL CHANNELS.

“Our social media channels show the greatest performance in terms of engagement and lead generation as compared to other advertising and promotional channels.”

Moreover, foreign doctors could practice in Laos for specific treatments like cosmetic surgery, and they could make enough financial income to sustain the practice. The medical school will also be able to recruit many international students from various countries. The hospital will also provide dermatology, diet therapy (Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine), chiropractic treatment for aesthetic purpose. Once we establish the funds for these areas, we will add more practices and treatments as the hospital grows.

Research Methodology

This chapter discusses the research methodology used in this paper, including research paradigm and methods. This paper will proceed with qualitative research. This includes consideration of data collection, sampling, and data analysis. The ethical issues related to the research are also discussed.

Research Design

Sampling

Data Collection

Data Analysis

Ethics

MEDICAL TOURISM

Medical tourism was once seemed as growing industry globally; however, recently it is said that the numbers of medical tourists are static or falling which indicates that Korea should find ways to revitalize the industry. With the support of the Korean government, they are trying to market themselves as a medical-hub to the other countries. Since the medical treatment costs more than what they offer in nearby medical tourism destinations it is not simple to remain competitive. Thus it is important for the Korean medical tourism industry to find the fields where they can stand above the other destinations then try to develop and provide what tourists are expecting to obtain internationally. Also the Korean medical tourism industry should distinguish what areas the factors influencing medical tourism destination choice to attract tourists by extending the medical tourism industry to Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

Medical Tourism

Types of Medical Tourism

Patients Go Overseas

Demand for Medical Tourism

Consumers

Growth of Medical Tourism

Medical Tourism Boom

Medical Tourism in Asian Countries

The State of Medical Tourism in Korea

error: Content is protected !!