Medical travel meets the mainstream

The Providence Journal ran a thorough, well-researched article on international medical travel in its Sunday edition (Outsourcing to India hip surgery). It tells the story of mainstream, middle-class, middle aged Americans making the rational decision to go abroad for medical procedures and achieving good results while saving money.

ANNE GRANT IS far from the flighty or desperate type you might imagine hopping a plane to get surgery in India. She's a prominent person locally - ordained minister, social activist and writer, former executive director of the Women's Center of Rhode Island, and the wife of H. Philip West Jr., former director of Common Cause of Rhode Island.

The article explains why a sensible person like that would make the decision she did:

• She was a candidate for hip resurfacing, a well-regarded procedure that's barely available in the US but common in India
• Availability of a highly-experienced medical team
• Luxurious surroundings and excellent customer service in the "Platinum Ward"
• Lower price

Grant's primary care physician was supportive, but she ran into a lot of the typical questions and prejudices when she visited a Providence hospital for her pre-trip vaccinations. An Infectious Disease physician from that hospital offered the following commentary to the reporter:

"You get what you pay for... What happens if you have the procedure, come back to United States and you develop a complication? Who's going to take care of it? Will your insurance cover it? ... How do you know about the sterility and quality of their equipment? How about if you need a blood transfusion in India? ... How about malaria? ... How about typhoid or measles? Measles is a common disease in India."

Luckily the reporter gave Grant's Indian surgeon, Dr. Vijay Bose the opportunity to respond to those concerns, something he could easily do:

• He's been working on a large number of Americans over the past few years and infections haven't been an issue

• Blood bank and sterility standards are as high as or higher than in the US and Europe

• Indian hospitals aren't underpriced. American hospitals are overpriced

As for insurance coverage, I think that situation is likely to change pretty quickly. That's backed up by a statement from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island attesting to their openness to the idea.

It would be nice if we did get what we pay for in the US, but since prices vary all over the place and so does quality, we definitely don't.