Extract from Latina Republic article – see link to video and full article below
Insights on the Medical Tourism Industry in Costa Rica
For Costa Rica, tourism is an integral part of the economy, and is well known for its versatility and variety. However, what most individuals are not aware of, is how truly wide ranged the tourism industry is there.
One growing business in Costa Rica is the medical tourism sector. For those who may not be aware of medical tourism, it is the practice of traveling abroad to have a procedure done. There are many reasons for going to another place to have a surgery done, and for one company specifically, they seek to provide clients with the knowledge and advice that one may not have.
For the Medical Tourism Directory Costa Rica, Claire and David Charnock’s mission as co-founders is to provide guests with the utmost expertise on medical services in the country, as well as connect them to an environment where clients feel safe and secure in their choice of medical procedures.
Latina Republic: Thank you for taking the time to join us today. Please tell us a little bit about yourselves and how you became involved in this industry.
David Charnock: We have lived in Costa Rica for around 15 years. We first started thinking about our business about 10 years ago.
We first started developing our idea, as Claire’s “baby.” We started as very small, and now we have our own niche directory that we share with North American and European individuals across the globe.
Latina Republic: Thank you for sharing. Claire, do you have anything you would like to add to this?
Claire Charnock: When we looked at the medical tourism industry, we knew that this was a booming area for Costa Rica. We went online as users to try and find great information and we stumbled a lot. Sometimes it took people weeks to respond, or their English was a bit hard to understand. Even ten years ago we could see that there was a gap in the market to be able to help people from overseas and with those in the country.
Our business started off with our web domain, we worked together with the best providers at the time to create a makeshift website. Now we are on our fourth website and currently building our fifth website, which is optimized on Google. We have changed and adjusted our web page a bit, as not everyone wants the medical tourism label.
David Charnock: I think one of the things worth adding that Claire has managed to achieve is the search engine optimization agency.
Within three years of the business, we were able to get on the first pages of Google in the United States for medical tourism. We were able to become well recognized in a very short time.
Latina Republic: For the typical types of medical services provided in Costa Rica, is there a most popular or most requested service by your users?
Claire Charnock: A lot of our clients, patients, and friends are from the United States and Canada, and with these places there are plenty of direct flights to the country. The reason for them coming down for these procedures are usually due to long wait times in Canada or due to high costs in the United States.
The main clients come to Costa Rica for dentistry, typically they come back for follow up treatments.
Orthopedics is another popular area of service, as well as cosmetic surgeries. We are seeing more and more people traveling for non-invasive services, as well as wellness retreats.
If someone asks for a service that we do not have, we will go out and find it.
Latina Republic: That is very interesting, especially comparing having surgeries done in their home country versus Costa Rica.
David Charnock: I think one of the primary factors behind people coming here is that the costs can be 40-55% less.
Many also come for the quality of care, the medical staff in Costa Rica have received extensive training and are bilingual, so there is not an issue with language.
I think the thing that draws people, too, is the safety factor. People feel very secure here and are not worried about traveling to Costa Rica. Sometimes they will stay longer to enjoy a vacation and still be able to come home with change in their pockets due to the affordability.
Claire Charnock: Our job is to reassure people, we will try to call people straight away as soon as they send in their inquiry. We work with a very exclusive and secure network of providers so clients feel safe in their decision making.
David Charnock: What differs us from other agencies is that we allow people to choose from our network and have flexibility with their options. We will help and direct them, but ultimately it is their choice in terms of providers.
Claire Charnock: Yes, we want people to have the flexibility of options, and still be able to provide support for them.
Something to add, is that we have 2 JCI accredited hospitals over here, which means that the standards are same or better than in the United States.
We also provide Zoom consultations prior with the clients and the doctors conducting the services.
The same surgeons will provide their contact information for these individuals if they have questions or concerns, which adds to the extra level of personal service.
Latina Republic: Excellent! With that also, what is the most rewarding part of the industry?
David Charnock: What is very important with this industry, is providing the health that one needs. We had a 60 year-old client who was having issues with tumors. He had been unable to get to the bottom of the issue.
We helped him find a specialist here, and then we saw him a couple weeks later after his surgery. His life had completely changed, witnessing his change before and after was truly a gratifying experience to see.
For me one of the most important things is seeing that helping someone, even if it is small, can make an impact on someone’s health.
Claire Charnock: Definitely, being able to support individuals and give them the confidence in their procedures. From another perspective, as foreigners in Costa Rica, we are incredibly proud of the network of doctors we work with. The professionalism standards, the patient care, is high quality.
Costa Rica is a small country in size that is doing great things.
David Charnock: Recently, the government has introduced legislation that gives an added level of protection for medical tourists.
This will give another guaranteed safety aspect to foreigners. The government endorsing and providing legal structure for medical tourism is excellent to witness.
Latina Republic: My final question for you two, is what would be your best advice for an individual who is looking for these medical services, but don’t know where to start?
Claire Charnock: If you are unaware of where to start, you can contact us! You can fill out a contact sheet. We can guide you through the options that are available through our resources. We suggest that one also sends a medical history report so our surgeons are able to review and provide an individual with the services that they need.
We are a directory with care, we want to make sure that one is able to have the surgery needed if it can be safely done. Our surgeons will not go through with a procedure if it is deemed unsafe. We have utilized medical tourism services personally, and the level of integrity and accreditation that is available in Costa Rica is wide-ranged.
Latina Republic: Thank you so much for sharing your insight on the tourism industry through your own perspective in Costa Rica. We are definitely looking forward to hearing more about your work in the future.
Claire and David Charnock: Thank you for having us and we look forward to welcoming more individuals to Costa Rica soon.
Thank you to Latina Republic for inviting us to this in-person interview.
The full article and live video can be viewed here – enjoy!
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