Launching and Operating Your Medical Tourism Facilitator Business by Mercury Healthcare International

Launching and Operating Your Medical Travel Business Professional Development with

Maria K Todd, MHA PhD Chief Executive Officer

The Mercury Healthcare Companies Globally Integrated Health Delivery System速 is a registered trademark of the Mercury Healthcare Companies.

About Maria Todd Twitter @AskMariaTodd

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CEO - Mercury Healthcare International, Inc – – –

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The largest medical tourism network in the world 800,000 providers, 6000+ hospitals, 94 countries covered, 54,000 pharmacies Full PHCS/MultiPlan network access reseller with proprietary Mercury Healthcare International Wrap Network

Award-winning HFMA Managed Care Speaker / Trainer since 1989 Author of 9 books on Managed Care, Contracting, Physician Employment, and Physician and Hospital Integration Consultant to Medical Tourism Hospitals, Teaching Hospitals, and Health/Tourism Ministries worldwide Expert on ERISA Self-funded health benefit plan design and Consumer Driven Health Benefit Programs Master of Health Administration (1987) and PhD, Health Administration (2001) Certified Mediator (2001) and Health Law Paralegal (1987) Former Surgical Nurse and EMT/Paramedic (1979-1986) Former Senior Travel Agent with AAA East Florida Division (1976-1979)

The Primary Role(s) of the Professional Medical Tourism Facilitator MARKETER of HEALTH SERVICES

10 Things Every Consumer Want to Know 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Who you are What are your qualifications in health travel or tourism Are you a trained observer and evaluator of medical things Where are your featured destinations â&#x20AC;&#x201C; How close/ How far Who are your featured providers, their qualifications and history How much does it cost How far away, what language do they speak Who will look out for them on arrival and throughout their stay Who monitors their progress and satisfaction What is something goes wrong

Basic Startup List for Most Facilitators •

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Legal Issues  Liability insurance No clients yet / require waivers when we get some  Data Privacy & Security / HIPAA compliance It’s offshore business  Contracts – Sign whatever they offer Corporate Structure  Got LLC? Someone said that was better than S Corp Business Plan  Got ideas? Write them down on a napkin, it’ll do Marketing Plan  Got website? GoDaddy and a Joomla Template  Got JCI? Something the hospitals are supposed to have Budget and Capital  Got $7.95? Buy a domain name  Got cell phone?  Got $3500? Attend MTA conference  Inspection trips? Wait for free fam tours  Email Gmail, Yahoo and Hotmail are Free! © 2011. Health Travel Training Institute- All rights reserved.

Industry Research • • • • • • • •

How large is the market Who are the established competitors Who are the go-to experts What training do you need How will you get good training How to compete and win clients What is unique about you Where is your value

Working Startup Capital You could easily invest $100,000 to start this business properly Assume another $100,000 for first year operations Establish Your Infrastructure

Buy Professional Liability Insurance

•Banking •Communications •Business Operations

Establish Your Network

Establish Client Workflow

Develop Legal Documents, Contracts, Compliance Policies

Develop Marketing Plan and Website

1 Service - 3 Pricing Models •

Cost based pricing – pricing based on your costs. Let’s say you want to have 50% operating profit margin. This implies $600 price for the product or service (=$600/0.5). At $600 revenue per unit and your $300 costs of delivering product or service, you have $3000 left as profit (a 50% profit margin)

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Market price – what similar products or services are selling for. Let’s say the prices range $55-$75. Therefore the average is $65. This is tough in Medical Tourism because some facilitators take a commission on the case from the hospitals and don’t charge a fee.

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Pricing for your desired income – how much do you want to pay yourself from this business. In this case you sell 2 cases per month, each unit cost you $300, for total costs of $600. Let’s say you want to pay yourself $5,000. This would translate to $5,600 in gross revenue ($600+$5,000) or $2800 per unit (=$5,600/2).

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Usually, these three methods lead to different price levels. One method is not better than another. They are simple methods which help you think through pricing and profitability in your business.

Do travel agents charge service fees? How much? Most do charge fees. The most common fee charged is a service fee for airline ticket procurement services.

An estimated 30,000 travel agents work from home. On average, 91% of travel agencies charge their customers $36 for providing this service. Agencies also often charge fees for other services such as trip research, rail, car rental and hotel-only reservations. They also earn small commissions on some package sales. ÂŠ 2011. Health Travel Training Institute- All rights reserved.

Extras Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll Soon Need / Want

Specialty Advertising (Promotional Giveaways) Branding and Promotional Efforts Inspection and Relationship Development Trips

Training and Professional Development Professional Certifications

Memberships

Conference Attendance / Sponsorships

What is this Job Really Like? Patient Workflow Step By Step

Initial Patient Contact 1.

Many emails & calls will often be competitors checking you out

If a prospect is serious, they will sign a contract, complete requested forms and releases right away and pay a new client fee. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll then respond with information on destinations, provider credentials and begin making appointments for telemedicine consultations, if you have the secure transmission technology to do so.

Source: ASTA

Provider Review of History and Records •

Physicians all over the world, except for the USA most often rather review digitized electronic medical records and not paper or films.

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Be prepared to send the records to obtain non-binding preliminary quotes for care. A firm quote often won’t be tendered until the doctor has had a chance to interview the patient.

Telehealth Conference Scheduled

Procedure Scheduled •

Procedure is tentatively scheduled – Deposit requested and forwarded to provider to confirm appointment – Travel arrangements purchased and confirmed – Procedure dates confirmed by provider and receipt provided for payment

Client Departs for Destination •

Meet and Greet arranged by facilitator or by provider at airport – Assistance with luggage – Assistance through immigration – Transportation by vetted drivers – Prepaid, pre-programmed loaner cell phone provided – Stop at ATM for pocket money, with security chaperone – Assistance with check in to hotel or hospital – Accompany client to guest quarters to ensure proper accommodation

Initial appointment with provider •

Initial face-to-face consultation

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Time allowed for any questions and concerns to be fully addressed

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Doctor’s acceptance of patient

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Patient’s acceptance of the doctor

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Patient receives explanation of risks and then signs their informed consent for treatment in front of the treating physician

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Any final pre-operative labs and testing carried out

Final “tweaks” to patient’s care plan may be needed pursuant to pre-operative lab and other diagnostic test results

Procedure Carried Out

Busy scene during a transplant surgery

Local Recovery at a Hotel After Hospital Discharge

Find helpful sample hotel inspection checklists in the Medical Tourism Facilitatorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Handbook

Patients are directed to comfortable hotels that have been subject to direct inspection by the facilitator or its designee for health traveler suitability, from safety to food preparation to cultural sensitivity training of the staff and management.

Special arrangements for the return home are made by the facilitator

Outcomes & Patient Satisfaction Monitored by the Facilitator

Q&A

The Mercury Healthcare Companies Group Health & Wellness  Cost Containment  Health Travel  Consulting  Training USA - UK - Malaysia - Philippines - India - Germany - Spain - South Africa

Final Thoughts… “Professional handling by an experienced medical travel facilitator is vital to the success and safety of each and every medical tourism patient encounter.

All Maria’s books are available at Amazon.com

mtodd@mercury-healthcare.com 800-727-4160 +1.303.228.7132

If you are new to the industry and have no medical or travel and tourism background, consider taking a class through the Health Travel Training Institute where you will learn proper tools, tips and techniques to get your business started on the road to success, and safe and satisfied clients who will refer friends and family to you for additional services.”

Mercury Healthcare International, Inc. One network  800,000 providers  92 countries

Globally Integrated Health Delivery, by Design™