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ISSUE 02 • 2017 | 2018
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AT TIME GOES BY
Wait times in Canada have improved — but reman a key reason for seeking treatment abroad
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HAVE AILMENT, WILL TRAVEL
Canadians more and more willing to go look elsewhere for medical care
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What does Alberta Health Care cover?
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ART DIRECTOR |
ARE YOU COVERED?
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Getting the proper care should be priority #1
Jim Zang
Jean Faye Rodriguez
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS |
Dave Macaulay, Vivian Zhang
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR |
Colleen Leier
Brandi Holmes, Mario Tonneguzzi
ADVERTISING SALES | ACCOUNTING |
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Make sure you know what your travel health insurance policy covers
Source Media Group
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER | EDITOR |
EDITORIAL |
COMING HOME
Your Canadian doctor has a professional ethical responsibility to help
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
PUBLISHER |
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Norma Robertson
Norma Robertson
©2017 Source Media Group Corp. Material cannot be reprinted in whole or in part without the written permission from the publishers. Source Media Group agrees to advertise on behalf of the advertiser without responsibility for claims or misinformation made by the advertiser and acts only as an advertising medium. Source Media Group reserves the right to refuse any advertising at its sole discretion. Destination Medical® is distributed semi-annually on free stands in the Calgary area. Destination Medical® accepts editorial submissions by electronic mail only. Please forward any submissions including all personal information to: editor@sourcemediagroup.ca. Unsolicited submissions will not be returned. Advertising information available only by request. CONTACT: Source Media Group Corp., 6109 - 6th Street S.E. Calgary, Alberta Canada T2H 1L9 Tel 403.532.3101 Toll-free (North America) 1.888.932.3101 Toll-free (Mexico) 01.800.077.2629 www.sourcemediagroup.ca
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AS TIME GOES BY
Wait times in Canada have improved — but remain a key reason for seeking treatment abroad BY MARIO TONNEGUZZI
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he Canadian health care system tries to keep wait times for priority procedures under control — but what constitutes an officially acceptable wait time may still seem long for some patients. “It’s ridiculous what waiting does to our lives,” says Tanya Greffard, co-director of Global Health Shift, a Calgary company that arranges medical travel for clients. In 2004, Canada’s first ministers made a commitment to reduce wait times as part of the 10-Year Plan to Strengthen Health Care. Target wait times were established in consultation with the medical community, and the most recent study by the independent Canadian Institute for Health Information shows the majority of procedures are being done within those benchmark times. In the case of hip and knee replacements, about 80 per cent of Alberta patients had their surgeries done within the established acceptable time period of 26 weeks — or about six months. And that doesn’t include time spent being referred to, and waiting to see, a specialist and then recovering after surgery.
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The benchmark wait for cataract surgery is 16 weeks, and in Alberta that target is reached 64 per cent of the time. For radiation therapy, the goal is to get started within four weeks, and that occurs in 98 per cent of cases, while the 48-hour target for hip fracture treatment is met 86 per cent of the time. The study, released in March this year and based on 2015 data, also shows the system has improved steadily over the past decade in reaching wait-time goals for most procedures. But for some patients those ideal waiting times can be unacceptably long, and that may drive them to seek treatment outside Canada, says the Fraser Institute in its 2016 report on Leaving Canada for Medical Care released October 12. “Given the long wait times Canadians face in Canada, it’s likely this is one of the reasons they travel abroad. “And this is, in addition to other factors, such as maybe cost, the unavailability of certain medical technology and things like that.” For patients awaiting hip and knee replacements, six months of pain and limited mobility may feel like an eternity. “It’s debilitating,” says medical travel facilitator Adele Kulyk, founder of Global Healthcare Connections Inc. “We have people in their 50s and 60s where the impact on their quality of life is devastating, and the pain.” As Canada’s population ages and risk factors such as obesity increase, the demand for procedures is likely to grow. That will make it difficult for the system to improve, or even maintain, the wait time standards it has achieved, says the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s report. Greffard says in her experience most people considering medical travel are not seeking a higher quality of care. Instead, wait times are a major motivator. “It’s not about finding better doctors,” Greffard says. “We have fantastic doctors here in Canada. It’s about finding a great doctor you can see on your own schedule. DM
HAVE AILMENT,
WILL TRAVEL Canadians more and more willing to go look elsewhere for medical care BY MARIO TONNEGUZZI
W
hen it comes to medical travel, everything starts with wait times, says Bacchus Barua, associate director at the Centre for Health Policy Studies for the Fraser
Institute. He cites the following statistic to back up his assertion. The national measurement in 1993 between referral from GP to seeing a specialist and getting treatment was about 9.3 weeks. The Fraser Institute’s 2016 study showed that it had ballooned to 20 weeks. “It’s so massive the deterioration in how long Canadians are waiting for care. Even when we started it, there were a lot of concerns about the long wait times,” says Barua, adding that physicians are also revealing patients are waiting longer than what they consider to be clinically reasonable. So that has been a major consideration in a growing number of those Canadians seeking medical care elsewhere. According to the Fraser Institute, in 2016, an Bacchus estimated 63,459 Canadians Barua received non-emergency medical treatment outside Canada. Physicians in British Columbia reported the highest proportion of patients receiving treatment abroad (2.4 per cent ). The largest number of patients estimated to have left the country for treatment was from Ontario (26,513). According to study estimates, more patients (9,454) travelled abroad for general surgeries than any other treatment. High numbers of Canadians also left the country for urology treatment (6,426), internal medicine procedures such as colonoscopies, gastroscopies and
angiographies (5,095) and ophthalmology treatment (3,990). Among physicians in Canada, otolaryngologists (which include ear, nose and throat specialists) reported the highest proportion (2.1 per cent) of patients travelling abroad for treatment, followed by neurosurgeons (1.9 per cent). The average percentage of patients receiving treatment outside of Canada in 2016 was 1.8 per cent in Alberta and 1.4 per cent in Canada. The estimated number of patients receiving treatment outside of Canada in 2016 was Ontario 26,513, British Columbia 15,372 and Alberta 9,067 Besides the growing wait times, Barua says there are many other factors leading to the nearly 40 per cent year-over-year hike in the number of Canadians who feel it is necessary to travel abroad to get the medical care they need. Sometimes they may want different kinds of treatment that may not be available here. “There are many anecdotal stories about Canadians travelling abroad because they couldn’t get treatment here in a timely manner,” explains Barua. “Our understanding is that there’s likely a lot of the patients ➤ DESTINATION MEDICAL 2017 | 2018
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Dr. William Ghali
here that we estimate going abroad who may have actually been motivated by the fact that they couldn’t receive the treatment that they need within the borders of Canada in a timely manner. And unfortunately the only recourse they had was to cross the border in order to receive treatment.” Janet Bristeir, author of Medical Tourism: How to Have Surgery Abroad Without It Costing Your Life, writes that people looking for surgery abroad are as varied as the conditions and reasons they are researching for surgery. “When you consider surgery abroad there can be a number of influencing factors: mobility, activity, lifestyle, whether the condition is life-threatening, your selfesteem, and your self-confidence. Is your quality of life reduced due to constant pain and immobility?” Barua says it’s an odd situation we’ve created where if you’re rich enough you are able to escape the wait times in Canada by literally crossing the border but even if you aren’t rich enough there are likely still a lot of individuals who will try and find a way to get the resources so that they can still do that. “The question really is why do you not get that treatment over here? Why is that not being delivered over here in a timely manner? One would imagine that for any patient regardless of their income bracket that they would like to be closer to their families in situations where they can go back to wherever they live and get the support they need within the country. Why are any Canadians having to travel abroad for treatment? What
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is available there that is not available here?,” wonders Barua. Tim Kulak, assistant communications director for Alberta Health, says the easiest and most expeditious way for people to get information on wait times is through the Canadian Institute for Health Information website: http://waittimes.cihi.ca/ “Alberta Health’s priority is to deliver high quality, sustainable public health care for Albertans, that includes providing timely access to health services,” he says. To improve timely access to health services, Alberta Health is working with and supporting Alberta Health Services in a number of areas, he says: • enhancing primary care and continuing care to reduce pressures on emergency departments and hospitals; • improving communications for referrals for consultation, advice and treatment between primary care providers and specialists to shorten wait times; and • better managing wait times for surgery using specific wait time targets and re-allocating operating room time according to the greatest need and when wait times exceed targets. One key wait-time reduction initiative is Choosing Wisely Canada: www.choosingwiselycanada.org/, adds Kulak, saying Alberta Health and AHS are implementing recommendations from Choosing Wisely Canada to increase efficiency and capacity by reducing inappropriate testing and medical procedures. Kulak says Alberta Health does not track the number of Albertans paying directly out of pocket for healthcare services in the U.S. Albertans, however, can apply to the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan for coverage of limited physician and hospital costs outside of Canada. In 2014/15 a total of 7,380 Albertans received health services in the U.S. “We encourage all Albertans travelling abroad or in other Canadian jurisdictions to get medical coverage before heading off to their destinations,” he says. Dr. William Ghali, scientific director at the O’Brien Institute for Public Health at the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary, says health is a huge issue. “Good health comes first and foremost in the realm of what people need for life — for good prosperous living. The extension of that is health concerns can be a huge, huge preoccupation and can be incredibly distressing for people. And so then an extension of that is when
has been a long-time critic of the Alberta healthcare system. From December 15, 2008 to September 12, 2011, Dr. Swann served as leader of the Alberta Liberal caucus, Her Majesty’s Official Opposition. He says the health system has become a sickness care system, driven too much by the fee codes, and it means people are not getting the time and full assessment and in many cases the quality of care that they should be getting. “Along with that trend we’re not investing in prevention — early intervention and we’re not managing people with long-standing illnesses — what we call chronic illnesses. We’re not managing them efficiently and well. So the result of all of this is that people are more and more I think frustrated by having to do repeated assessments, more testing, more followups,” says Swann. “Sometimes errors are made because it’s not as thorough assessment as it should be… It becomes a vicious cycle where if we’re not doing the best job, we’re not getting the best results and we’re getting more and more people coming back and more and more wait and more and more frustration.” Swann says there are countries around the world — including some developing countries — that spend much more of their budget in early intervention and prevention. DM
The health system has become a sickness care system, driven too much by the fee codes, and it means people are not getting the time and full assessment and in many cases the quality of care that they should be getting. people become sick, they want to do everything that they can to get to the bottom of it and treat it,” says Ghali. So some decide to travel elsewhere to get that care if they feel they are not getting it in a timely fashion. In its report, Leaving Canada for Medical Care, 2017, the Fraser Institute says the number of people seeking healthcare outside of Canada is not insubstantial. “They point to a sizeable number of Canadians whose needs and healthcare demands could not be satisfied within Canada’s borders,” says the report. “There are a number of possible reasons why this may have been the case. Some patients may have been sent out of country by the public healthcare system due to a lack of available resources or the fact that some procedures or equipment are not provided in their home jurisdiction. Others may have chosen to leave Canada in response to concerns about quality… seeking more advanced health care facilities, more state-of-theart medical technologies, or better outcomes. Another explanation may relate to the long waiting times that patients are forced endure in Canada’s healthcare system. “Clearly, the number of Canadians who ultimately receive their medical care in other countries is not insignificant. That a considerable number of Canadians travelled abroad and paid to escape the well-known failings of the Canadian healthcare system speaks volumes about how well the system is working for them.” Dr. David Swann, elected to his fourth term as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for the constituency of Calgary-Mountain View on May 5, 2015,
Dr. David Swann
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A D V E R T I S I N G F E AT U R E
Eisenhower Medical Center Snowbirds flock to wellness oasis in the California desert
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fter years of hip pain resulting from a crack in his labrum, Vancouver lawyer Daryl Collier decided to take possible options for hip replacement surgery into his own hands back
in 2015. Collier’s search for relief took him to Eisenhower Medical Center, a 465-bed hospital with a network of some 22 clinics and 220 physicians in Rancho Mirage, California. With a residence in nearby Palm Desert, Collier is among an estimated 100,000 Canadians who travel to the Palm Springs area annually, many of whom also take advantage of what’s fast becoming a medical tourism wellness destination. Collier said one reason for looking outside of Canada was the lengthy waitlist he’d be facing down for surgery at home. “I may have gotten to the point where I would not have been able to continue practicing law,” says Collier, now 74 and enjoying his semi-retirement. “For me it was worthwhile. I am an active individual; I try to hit the gym five days a week, I do as much cycling and hiking as I can. I felt my life was being withheld as a result of this — and waiting a year to have the surgery done in Vancouver was not something I wanted to do.” At $25,000 for his surgery and follow-up care, Collier says getting a new hip much sooner than he would have in British Columbia was worth the investment. He recalls walking just two days later and climbing stairs after a few weeks, before returning to Canada and his Vancouver law practice in just over a month. Collier was so pleased with the results, he’s since encouraged his wife to access the center’s surgical services — and she’s scheduled for a knee replacement there in January. David Renker, Eisenhower Medical Center’s Director of Ambulatory Services and Special programs, says snowbirds from Canada like Collier make up a considerable share of patients at the facility, which offers everything from an Executive
Health Program, to cardiovascular care and orthopedic surgery. But it’s not just complex surgeries that are luring snowbirds to the southerly clime. “The most popular thing that we see is [people accessing] the executive health program,” says Renker. Instead of waiting months, having to see multiple specialists and trekking to various labs for a battery of tests, patients can spend a day and undergo preventative screening tests for their heart, lung and metabolic disease, certain types of cancer, as well as body composition and cognitive assessment. All of the results are reviewed at an in-person or telephone consultation and the patients come away with in-depth information about their health status and any health issues that need addressing. For those who do choose to have a surgery at the Eisenhower Medical Center, Renker says one thing he often receives positive feedback about, after the medical expertise, is the surroundings. “One really unique thing we have is an all-suite pavilion where the quality of care is the same as you’d get in any other hospital but the experience is five star. The suites have all of the latest modern furnishings with their own dining room and kitchen areas and people really enjoy that when they have visitors,” says Renker. n
KNOW
BEFORE YOU GO
What does Alberta Health Care cover?
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atients looking to travel outside of Canada to undergo medical procedures are encouraged to do their homework before booking their trip. While in their home province residents are covered for many traditional hospital and medical costs under the Alberta Health Care Insurance Program (AHCIP), leaving Canada or even Alberta can often mean patients having to pay out of pocket for medical costs. Alberta Health spokesperson Carolyn Ziegler says it’s best to check prior to finalizing travel plans what may or may not be covered under the AHCIP while out of province at www.health.alberta.ca/AHCIP. “We do suggest that if you are travelling outside of Alberta that you have insurance, whether that is through an employer or a private company,” says Ziegler. “Outside of Canada most things aren’t covered. There is a stipend ($100 for in-hospital care and $50 for outpatient per day) that you can get if you were in a hospital, that you could submit and get payment for. That is not going to cover a lot.” Alberta Health has an Out-of-Country Health Services Committee that determines what medical costs will be covered outside of Canada. Procedures that are, as well as exclusions — such as hospital services provided in a private health facility — are listed online. As is the case in Alberta, cosmetic surgeries, unless deemed necessary by a doctor, ambulance service and prescription medications are not covered outside of Canada by AHCIP. “There is a committee and an appeal panel where we cover the costs of procedures or services outside of the province or outside of Canada — it’s generally not something that’s available in Alberta. The rationale would be that it’s a procedure only offered in one or two facilities in the world and we don’t have a doctor in
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Alberta that does it,” explains Ziegler. And if it’s not yet been proven medically, it’s not eligible for coverage or reimbursement. “Trials or experimental procedures are generally not covered, as well as if it’s something that’s available in Alberta. Also, if you say ‘I want to go to the States because there is a doctor there that I want’ but the surgeons of Alberta cover that, then it’s generally not covered.” There is an information sheet and an application form on the Alberta Health website, but both must be filled out by a physician and submitted with supporting medical documents, Ziegler cautions. “It’s really important to start the process before you go. Sometimes people come back (after a procedure) and then try to submit claims, and it’s possible that things could be covered but it’s not necessarily guaranteed. It’s always important you talk to your doctor and you check with the committee — and you do that well in advance. “The main thing for Albertans, before they leave, is to know what is covered and not covered within the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan, and there probably is some confusion with some people. We do also have a section in general on insurance and answering all the questions you might have about your Alberta Health Care Insurance,” concludes Ziegler. Albertans with any questions about the Out-ofCountry Health Services Committee or what AHCIP covers can call 780-415-8744. DM
COMING HOME
Your Canadian doctor has a professional ethical responsibility to help
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ccording to a study by Deloitte, the burgeoning industry of medical tourism — Canadians travelling to foreign soil for medical, cosmetic and dental procedures — accounted for an investment of some $40 billion US by the end of 2010. But this growth in the trend of medical tourism can also raise questions, not the least of which concern ethical responsibilities and legal obligations of the medical community to Dr. Jeremy patients after they return Snyder home, for follow-up care or worse — complications related to the procedure. Dr. Jeremy Snyder, associate professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, says doctors and dentists have an ethical responsibility to offer their patients care, even if their emergency is based, on or the result of, care received outside of Canada. Canadian doctors are bound by oath to do their best to address patient concerns and health care needs, Snyder says. “The Canadian Medical Association has a professional code of responsibility of physicians to patients. That’s not a legally binding document — but it
Canadian doctors are bound by oath to do their best to address patient concerns and health care needs.
is something that speaks to the ethics of doctors. They have a responsibility to help patients and prevent them from getting hurt, but there are limits to what one can do in that situation… It is a balancing act for sure.” Snyder’s team at Simon Fraser also produces its own website on medical tourism (medicaltourismandme.ca), that features general advice about things to think about before going abroad for procedures and possible things to consider that might go wrong. Dr. Trevor Theman, former CEO and registrar of the Alberta College of Physicians and Surgeons, says Alberta doctors follow the Canadian Medical Association’s Code of Ethics, under which physicians and surgeons must: “Provide whatever assistance you can for any person with an urgent need for medical care. You apply that to the patient that goes elsewhere to get a hip replacement or a kidney transplant or laser eye surgery or a Dr. Trevor cosmetic procedure Theman and the answer is that if they have an urgent need, then physicians have an obligation to provide assistance.” Theman urges patients who may be looking at having surgeries or procedures done outside of Canada to ask the right questions before going under the knife of the health care team at the facility. “One should be very cautious about understanding what the qualifications and training are if you see somebody and they call themselves a dermatologist or an eye doctor or a cosmetic surgeon. Cosmetic surgeon, for example — there is no accredited program for cosmetic surgeons in Canada. We have plastic surgeons and they do ➤ DESTINATION MEDICAL 2017 | 2018
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cosmetic surgeries, but their training is in plastic surgery… If they call themselves a cosmetic surgeon, what are they actually? What kind of rules are there around what they can call themselves. One should be cautious Dr. Randall around that.” Croutze Dr. Randall Croutze, CEO and registrar at the Alberta Dental Association and College, says like doctors, Alberta dentists are bound by oath to help patients who come to their office with dental needs, even if it’s based on follow-up care or complications from a surgery done elsewhere. After all, it’s not always practical to return to Mexico or India if something happens with a crown or dental implant.
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“Anyone that presents to us with a dental concern we are certainly going to examine that patient and take a look at what problem they have,” assures Croutze. “We wouldn’t treat them any different than any other patient presenting to the office.” Croutze suggests that patients looking at care abroad or in the U.S. first consult with their local dentist to ensure it’s a procedure they need. For more on the Alberta College of Physicians and Surgeons ethical responsibilities to patients, visit www.cpsa.ca and for tips on dental health and standards of the Alberta Dental Association and College, go to www.dentalhealthalberta.ca DM
ARE YOU COVERED? Make sure you know what your travel health insurance policy covers
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mong the associated costs with medical tourism, a first priority should be insurance, say policy experts. Though it’s still a bit of a grey area when it comes to what can be covered by travel health insurance, it’s well worth considering as a relatively small investment in the overall cost. What many may not realize is that it’s difficult to find insurance to cover the procedure itself. “Typically policies in the Canadian market will not cover individuals for the services that they are going to get,” says Will McAleer, president of the Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada (THIA). “Policies that you buy on an individual basis are for emergencies, something sudden and unexpected that required an intervention of a medical practitioner.” McAleer advises looking at travel insurance as an expense that can save you money and worry in the event of an unrelated injury or medical emergency. “Let’s say you are down there and you are getting a procedure done and you cross the street and get hit by a car,” he cautions. “Your typical travel insurance would cover you for that as long as it’s not related to the treatment you were going down there to get.” Insurance can also cover you if you need to cancel your trip, he notes. “Let’s say just before you were to go on that plane you need to cancel it for one of the reasons you can cancel it. You get way too sick to go on the trip, someone in your family suddenly and unexpectedly passes away or you lose your job. Trip cancellation would pay to reimburse you for the nonrefundable cost.” McAleer stresses that honesty is the best policy when dealing with insurers. “You need to make sure you are disclosing any medical conditions and answering
truthfully on applications and that you are actually taking time to look at the policy and make sure that it lines up with coverage you are expecting you would have. When you are in an emergency room in a foreign country that is not the time to look at the fine print of your insurance contract.” Sharmin Hislop, spokesperson for Alberta Blue Cross, says when she has clients who are travelling for medical reasons, she commonly refers them to other insurance brokers and providers. She says while Alberta Blue Cross will generally not cover non-emergency medical procedures in its policies, it’s the company’s mandate to “cover you or find someone who will. You can’t leave people without insurance.” Like McAleer, Hislop recommends always being up front with your insurance provider about the purpose of a trip, and perhaps even more importantly, to read the fine print in any travel insurance policy. “We always say with any coverage that the first page they should read is the exclusions page.” One of the companies Hislop commonly defers to Calgarybased Simpson Group Insurance Will McAleer Services. ➤ DESTINATION MEDICAL 2017 | 2018
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Sharmin Hislop
“You are going to find that a lot of policies will not even insure a person to travel when the purpose if to seek medical attention,” says Jeff Simpson, president of the Simpson Group. “But there are policies, certainly ones that we work with, that will insure unrelated to the condition or related conditions that might arise from whatever the procedure that they’re going for. We write that kind of coverage on a pretty consistent basis.” Simpson says that it might also be worth it to ask the operating facility in the country you are travelling to just what insurance options they can offer. He says he has also seen provincial government policies foot the bill in special cases. “There are also people that, having exhausted the Canadian system, the specific treatment that is necessary or is available in another country, hasn’t been approved in Canada or is not available in Canada, there are times when
Jeff Simpson
those procedures are coverable by Alberta healthcare or other provincial providers. I have seen examples of that.” Simpson advises also finding out exactly what will be covered up front. Even if Alberta Health has agreed to pay for a surgery and its associated costs, travellers may be on their own for any additional costs that ensue. “Just because Alberta Health will cover a medical procedure that you’re going to have in another country or in the U.S. it doesn’t mean that if you suffer another medical emergency that they’re going to pick that up as well,” he explains. DM
DECISIONS, DECISIONS Getting the proper care should be priority #1
T
he Medical Travel Quality Alliance (MTQUA) advises patients looking for medical care abroad to seek out information on things like accreditation status through official sources. Word of mouth recommendations are important, as are issues such as patient safety and security, marketing integrity, and, of course, quality of work. While all of the these points should certainly be considered when choosing a healthcare destination abroad, the most important is to find the right treatment. Never compromise on your care just to see a certain country, or commit to travelling further than is safe or comfortable. Answering the following basic questions and finding a balance between all of these elements will help you make the right choice. • How far is it? • How expensive is it to get to? • How expensive is it to stay? • What is the standard of the healthcare facilities? • What are the tourist facilities like? • Will language be an issue? • Are you putting your medical treatment first?
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The MTQUA regularly reviews hospitals for their annual list of World’s Best Hospitals for Medical Tourists, using some of the criteria below. 1 Medical quality and outcomes 2 International patient communication and care management 3 International patient marketing 4 Value for service 5 Patient safety and security 6 Transparency and disclosure 7 Attention to other unique needs of the medical traveler 8 Website 9 Management 10 Partnerships, alliances and external support See the Top 10 list of World’s Best Hospitals for Medical Trourists visit www.mtqua.org DM
A D V E R T I S I N G F E AT U R E
Sani Dental Group Mexican dental practice puts smiles on Canadian faces
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Mexican dental practice has become a popular destination in the last few years for Canadians and Americans. Originally established in 1985 by Enrique Jimenez and now located in Los Algodones, Mexico, Sani Dental Group has become one of the most prestigious dental clinics in Mexico. Genesis Nogami, promotions coordinator with Sani Dental Group, says the dental practice has 38 dentists in two dental clinics. Last year, the company saw about 9,000 patients. “We have a lot of patients from Canada and the United States,” says Nogami. “Most of them usually come for the price. It’s the most common answer for most of the patients because the insurance doesn’t cover what they need or it’s too expensive or they have to wait a lot of time for any treatment. That’s the main reason why they come here.” Nogami says many people from the United States and
Canada also come to Mexico to spend time during the cold winter months and seek out the services of Sani Dental while they are there. “So they just cross the border and they find quality dental work. Good food. Good margaritas,” adds Nogami. Sani Dental Group offers people a wide range of specialists, who are focused on laser dentistry, oral surgery, dental implantology, cosmetic dentistry, endodontics, and periodontics. “Whether you need a complex or a simple surgery, Sani Dental Group is here to take care of your needs. With more than 30 dentists and experience ranging from five to 30 years, we guarantee that we have the professional dentist you need. Also, our facilities have earned multiple awards… and our staff members are constantly updating their skills,” says the dental group. One of the key initiatives of Sani Dental Group is that if offers everything a person needs in one place. Nogami says it can help people in setting up their trip to Mexico and in finding accommodations. It also offers people free shuttle services from the airport to its clinics. It accepts all forms of payment — cash, personal and traveller’s cheques, and credit cards. Its dental work also has up to a five-year full warranty. “We have an increasing number each year (of patients from Canada and the United States). At the beginning it was about 10 per cent of Canadians coming to Los Algodones. Right now I would say 30 or 40 per cent of our patients come from Canada,” says Nogami. “Most of them in the winter season. But we’ve had an increase of Canadians coming each year to our clinics.” Sani Dental says its facilities are equipped with cuttingedge technologies. The member of the American Dental Association has professionals extensively trained to complete all dental work. It says it’s the only dental clinic in the region with the prestigious “International Patient Services Certification.” Specialists are available for each individual treatment a patient requires.
A D V E R T I S I N G F E AT U R E
“Unlike other clinics or private practices, we rely on our on-site laboratory that gives us a great advantage because you have your dentist and your lab technician in the same place, and together, they determine the most appropriate way to carry out the treatment,” says the company. Nogami says one of the main goals of the company is making sure the patient has a good overall experience at its clinics. “We are the largest dental group in the area. We have all the specialties in one clinic,” she says. “Our market is seniors and Baby Boomers and snowbirds and 55-year-old-plus patients. “We have great customer service before and after every major surgery. We can help you booking hotel reservations and any information regarding your treatment. We have a team for that.” Nogami says Sani Dental is associated with two hotels which are exclusive for its patients. “We want to develop a complete experience for patients so they don’t have to worry about anything,” she says. “I think that’s what makes us somewhat different.” At Sani Dental Group, patients will enjoy a large, comfortable waiting room with access to telephone calls to the United States and Canada, Internet access, and plasma TVs that will make their stay comfortable and pleasant. Los Algodones is located just seven miles west from Yuma, Arizona. It’s often referred by many as the dental mecca of the world as it is the number one destination for dental tourism in Mexico. Sani Dental Group says Los Algodones is a tourist area, safe to walk around, providing great comfort, attention, and security, compared to some other border cities. Visit www.sanidentalgroup.com for more information. n