Costa Rican Medical Tourism: Interview with Dr. Jim Dudl

by Bret G. Dudl, Costa Rica Views
Click on these clicks for information about Costa Rica Yoga Retreat and Costa Rica Wellness Center.

We recently interviewed one of our professionals, Dr. Jim Dudl, about his thoughts and assessments on a wide range of topics from medical tourism in Costa Rica to wellness in general. This interview is the first in a series.

Q: Dr. Dudl please tell us about yourself and your background at Kaiser Permanente.
A: At the present time, I am the Consultant for Diabetes for the 600,000 diabetic members at Kaiser Permanente national.

Q: How large is Kaiser Permanente today in terms of number of patients?
A: It’s about 8 million patients, 13 regions with multiple hospitals and clinics.

Q: Do you know how many doctors work at Kaiser today?
A: I presume about 2,000-3,000.

Q: Ok. Tell us about your recent visit to Costa Rica and the Costa Rican medical system.
A: The Costa Rica medical tourism is an interesting opportunity for people in the United States who may wish to come to a beautiful place and at the same time have some health care needs enhanced or met. In Costa Rica, they have setup a system whereby they can do many other things that are in demand in the United States but sometimes that insurance does not cover or for people who don’t have insurance.

Q: What was your first impression when you visited the medical facilities in Costa Rica?
A: Well, it was very positive. I think, when people are talking about doing a medical procedure on their body in a foreign country, there are several things they need to consider. But the most important first thing is safety. It is your life and you want to be sure that this place is as safe as the United States.

Q: When we say this place, tell us what places in Costa Rica you went to visit?
A: Well, we visited two hospitals in San Jose, one called Clinica Biblica and the other Cima. And the proof that these places are as safe as the United States is quite evident because they have been inspected by the same group that inspects the US hospitals. In the United States, if you do not pass the Joint Commission Evaluation, you will be shut down and if you do pass, you are accredited in the US.

Q: What is this test? Is it annual? How vigorous is it? Tell us a little bit about Joint Commission International and what it means to have this accreditation.
A: It is usually done every two years in the hospital. It is a 3-day ordeal where they probe absolutely everything. They go over your statistics. What are your deaths? What are your success rates? What are your infection rates? What outcomes do you have? And they compare them with all the other hospitals in the US. They go through your facility, they look at it, they ensure that its clean, that it is meeting standards, the drugs are not out of date, the equipment all works. It is done in a minute fashion to looking at detail. The good thing about these two hospitals that we visited, is they are Joint Commission International approved which means all those same rigorous criteria were met by these two hospitals.

Q: And then when you went through these hospitals, and you got the sense, first of all, by knowing that they were joint approved. What were your other impressions that you received from the hospitals that you thought were memorable and worth mentioning?
A: Firstly, of course, safety is just a baseline. Quality is a key. If you are going there to have something done on your body, you want to be sure you have a high quality outcome. The other thing that I was impressed with was their quality statistics. They are again as good as the US. If you are having a plastic surgery, look at the picture, you can see how good they do, if you are having eye surgery, orthopedic surgery, gastric, bariatric surgery, all of those, the outcomes are equal to the US. So the second piece that was important was that they are equal in quality, not just safety. Then the third, which is something that we really value when we are a patient in the hospital, is the service. These places were not crowded, they were clean, the people were pleasant. They treated you very well and I must say, I think actually at a level beyond what I see in a usual hospital in the US.

For FREE cost estimate for affordable surgery in Costa Rica, contact Healthbase.

Statement on medical tourism by ACS (American College of Surgeons)

Today, medical tourism is a widely accepted and proven formula for top quality care at low cost. Given the manifold increase in the number of patients traveling overseas for medical and surgical care from the US, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) has recognized that surgical care has become more readily available in a wider global market, and that this phenomenon is here to stay. So, the College recently developed an official "Statement on Medical and Surgical Tourism", which according to ACS is "consistent with the College’s longstanding advocacy position of promoting an environment of optimal care for the surgical patient".

The College has developed several key principles (listed below) for those who choose to seek surgical care abroad. The College:

• encourages patients to seek care of the highest quality and supports their rights to select their surgeons and health care institutions without restriction.


• encourages its Fellows to assist all patients in reaching informed decisions concerning medical care, whether at home or abroad.


• advises patients to consider the medical, social, cultural, and legal implications of seeking medical treatment abroad prior to deciding on a venue of care.


• encourages patients electing to receive treatment abroad to seek care at health care institutions that have met the standards for accreditation established by recognized accrediting organizations.


• encourages patients electing treatment abroad to seek care from surgeons and anesthesiologists certified in their specialties through a process equivalent to that established by the member boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties.


• encourages patients receiving treatment abroad to obtain a complete set of medical records prior to returning home so that the details of their care are immediately available to their physicians and surgeons in the U.S. Follow-up care at home should be organized prior to travel whenever possible.


• encourages patients contemplating medical tourism to understand the special risks of combining long international flights and certain vacation activities with anesthesia and surgical procedures.


• opposes the imposition of provisions for mandatory referral of patients by insurers to health care institutions outside the U.S., unless such provisions are clearly and explicitly stated in the insurance contract and accepted by the subscriber.


• supports the view that payors referring patients for mandatory treatment abroad should be responsible for the coordination and reimbursement of follow-up care in the U.S., including the management of postoperative complications, readmissions, rehabilitation, and long-term care.

Source: Statement on Medical and Surgical Tourism by ACS

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Healthbase Collaborates with WellPoint to Bring Affordable Medical Tourism Solutions to Americans

Healthbase collaborates with WellPoint to bring affordable healthcare benefits to Americans through an international medical tourism pilot program. Members will now have more choices regarding where to receive care and a greater involvement in the care they receive

BOSTON, Jan. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Healthbase Online Inc., a Boston-based award-winning medical tourism facilitator, has collaborated on a pilot basis with WellPoint, Inc., an Indianapolis-based health benefits company to provide global health care coverage to members of WellPoint's affiliated health plan in Wisconsin. Healthbase will handle all the medical travel logistics and arrangements for WellPoint members.

According to Saroja Mohanasundaram, CEO of Healthbase (http://www.healthbase.com), "Healthbase is committed to providing high quality medical travel services at affordable cost. Healthbase will assist WellPoint members with coordination of the trip, medical appointment scheduling, digital medical records transfer, and concierge travel service."

Under this program, effective from January 2009, members who travel for certain non-emergency elective procedures like joint replacement and spinal fusion, will have access to Joint Commission International accredited healthcare providers in India. This will result to lower out-of-pocket costs for members translating into thousands of dollars in total savings. A hip replacement surgery, for example, costing over $60,000 in the US, costs less than $8,000 at an accredited hospital in India.

"We are pleased to work collectively with Healthbase to deliver an international medical tourism pilot product to our clients who are interested in exploring a medical tourism solution," said Dr. Razia Hashmi, vice president and medical director for WellPoint's national accounts division. "Medical tourism is a promising option for improving access to affordable, quality health care. Working with Healthbase, our case managers will coordinate all steps of the medical tourism process for members interested in receiving care overseas."

About Healthbase:

Healthbase is a one-stop source for global medical and dental choices, connecting patients to internationally accredited providers in 14 countries including India, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, Panama, Costa Rica and Mexico. Healthbase caters to individual consumers, self-funded businesses, insurers, benefit consultants, third party administrators and those using Consumer Directed Healthcare Plans (CDHPs) or voluntary benefit plans. More information at http://www.healthbase.com.

About WellPoint, Inc.:

WellPoint, Inc. is the largest health benefits company in terms of medical membership in the United States. WellPoint is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and serves its members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as the Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), Wisconsin; and through UniCare. Additional information about WellPoint is available at http://www.wellpoint.com.

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