May 23 - South Korea has launched an initiative called 'collaborative medical tourism' that will especially focus on tourists from the Middle East. In fact, recent figures show that South Korea played host to over 60,000 medical tourists from all over the world.
It is because of this that the Korea Tourism Organisation (KTO) organised a 'Korea Medical Tourism Evening' in Dubai on Wednesday night in cooperation with ALTA Travel Agency to allow visitors to explore Korean medical tourism products and the technology and expertise available in the country. "A top priority for medical providers around the world has been to attract medical tourists from the Middle East for many years, but currently, the trend is gradually reversing as the Middle East is seeking to attract medical tourists," said Charm Lee, President of KTO.
Services for Muslim patients have also been included in the medical care available there. These include various aspects of clinical care, food services, religious observances and visiting arrangements. "We are fully aware that increasing mutual understanding and having healthy discourse regarding culture and religion are some of the key components in serving the medical tourism industry. Medical skills and technologies constitute aspects where understanding and cooperation between Korea and the Middle East can be encouraged,” added Lee.