Medical tourism facilitators walk a tightrope between ethics and business

When Marie Gopaul,* a 71 year old Mauritian, needed a hip replacement she and her family had concerns about doing it locally. “Doctors told me that the outcomes of robotic hip replacement are the best,” says Marie’s son Louis.* “In Mauritius many hip replacement patients who are operated on conventionally struggle to walk postoperatively.”Because robotic surgeries weren’t available in Mauritius the family decided to pay for Marie to have surgery abroad—becoming one of the hundreds of thousands of patients who choose to become medical tourists in a market projected to grow from US$24.14bn (£19bn; €22.24bn) in 2023 to $93.38bn by 2030.1 They settled on India, and for assistance in choosing a doctor and a hospital Louis approached an online medical tourism facilitator recommended by his friends.Medical tourism facilitators manage and coordinate all activities related to the care of patients and their treatments while travelling abroad, such as visa applications, hotel…
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