Gone are the days, when people frowned upon going to Asian countries for medical treatment. Today the availability of world-class doctors and facilities, and relatively cheaper cost of treatment brings many medical tourists to India and other Asian countries.
In India, medical tourism, say a decade ago, was restricted to patients from the neighbouring countries, the Middle East and Africa. But it isn’t so anymore, patients from countries across the world including the US and Europe come to India for many advanced procedures like spine and brain surgery, cancer treatment, in vitro fertilization, heart and liver transplant, and bone marrow transplants.
Cosmetic and hair transplant surgeries are a big draw as well. The reason being – getting similar services for almost one-tenth of the cost compared with the West. A hair transplant in the UK can cost anything between £3,000 – £15,000; in the US it averages around $4,000 to $15,000, while in Australia the same surgery will set you back by $11,000-$18,000. But, the hair transplant in India is quite affordable and less.
In India, the surgery will cost about Rs 30,000 to Rs 1, 50,000 which is roughly about $450-$2300.
The important thing is that you are getting an experienced surgeon and top-notch facilities. The kind of procedures offered are also the same as any other part of the world, both the FUT or Follicular Unit Transplantation, and FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction procedures are available in the country.
In fact, it would not be too much to actually plan a vacation around your surgery. Since a hair transplant surgery is not like any other surgery, it is minimally invasive and pain-free and has a short recovery period. You can actually couple your surgery with a nice rip around the tropical country.
Patients are usually required to be in the hospital or clinic only on the day of surgery, till the anaesthesia wears off. Then they have to come back to get the bandages off. There is slight discomfort or a feeling of stretchiness on the scalp but it is nothing a common painkiller cannot resolve.
The day after the surgery, patients will feel good enough to go out and explore.
Now the thing about India, unlike any other country in the world is that it offers you a multitude of experiences in terms of travel, climate and food. You can choose to stay in the city you get your surgery in, like Mumbai, Delhi or Bengaluru, each offers varied experiences in terms of history, culture and cuisines. Or you can choose to go to places like Kerala, Kashmir and Rajasthan or the North Eastern states, and explore other parts of the country.
And since the surgery doesn’t really need you to follow any dietary restrictions, you can try out all kinds of food in the country.
The only thing to be careful about is to follow the doctor’s instructions, save your scalp from extreme weather, direct sunlight or freezing cold, neither are good for your scalp till the grafts settle in. You can wear a loose hat or a scarf to protect your new follicles. Also be careful to not indulge in extreme physical activities.
However, before planning the whole vacation, spend some time to find a suitable clinic and surgeon. Look for highly reviewed clinics and book a consultation with them. Only then finalise the plan. Some clinics also have options for accommodation during the surgery and recovery, which can be very helpful. Once all the due diligence is done, hop on the next plane!