Now, get hospiotelised and have a treat

mumbai: is it a hotel? is it a hospital? as it turns out, the panvel facility inaugurated on the weekend by the apollo group and the national union of seafarers india is both. containing bars, lounges and jacuzzis under the same roof as cardiograms, x-ray machines and pathology labs, it's the city's first so-called hospiotel. hospital officials hope it will promote medical tourism in india, attracting international patients and corporate executives to avail a cocktail of treatment, travel and fun.many major surgeries can be performed in india at a tenth of their cost in the united states,'' said adrian kennedy, senior vice president, apollo health street limited. this cost advantage and india's large pool of well-trained professionals will draw global business.'' already, hospiotels have been opened in goa, kerala and uttaranchal. mumbai, it's clear, hopes to be the home to even more such establishments. that was obvious from the enthusiasm for medical tourism on display at a recent conference of hospital administrators organised by the tata institute of social sciences. officials claimed that medical tourism would be india's next it industry,'' and referred to the country as the healthcare destination of the world''. ironically, india's primary health system is hospiotelised and among the worst in the world. and marketing india as a site for health tourism isn't proving easy. open sewers, stray dogs and piles garbage—these are some of the impressions that tourists have of the country,'' noted ratan jalan, ceo, apollo health & lifestyle ltd., the conference. how will we attract them medical treatment given our poor hygiene conditions?'' concerns about unhygenic recycling syringes has already contributed to a decline the number of medical tourists from asia, doctors admitted. one doctor quipped: it is doubtlessly cheaper to do nose reconstructions, kidney transplants, and cardiac surgeries in india than in the us or in the uae. being generous, the country also tends throw in typhoid and diarrhoea for the medical tourist.''