Factors Affecting the Attraction of Medical Tourists in Iran

Sadaf Haji Ahmadi,Seyed Mojtaba Hosseini,Mehrnoosh Jafari

doi:10.29252/ijmr-040204

Sadaf Haji Ahmadi, Seyed Mojtaba Hosseini + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.29252/ijmr-040204

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Abstract

Medical tourism is a new form of tourism that has seen increasing growth in recent years as an economic activity based on business services that link the two fields of medicine and tourism. Two of the most important issues to be considered in this regard are the marketing of medical tourism and the advantage of the relative competitive advantage. Therefore, the identification and prioritization of factors affecting the attraction of medical tourists might help to improve the quality and quantity of this new industry not only in Iran, but also in the world. From the viewpoint of academic experts in the field of tourism and medical tourism, physicians, hospital managers, and medical tourists, medical tourism in Iran is affected by service and welfare factors, advertising factors, physical factors, political and geographical factors, and human factors, respectively.

Highlights

After World War II, tourism was accepted in all social classes of Western industrial societies and was recognized as a modern collective phenomenon
Medical tourism in Iran was first noticed by the Ministry of Health in 2003
The Ministry of Health had focused more on the issue of job creation for medical graduates and not on the development of medical tourism; gradually, after 2004 and the integration between cultural heritage organizations and Iranian and world tourism organizations, medical tourism was established independently in Iran.[2]

Summary

Introduction

After World War II, tourism was accepted in all social classes of Western industrial societies and was recognized as a modern collective phenomenon. The factors affecting medical tourism were investigated and prioritized, and a detailed review of the role of hospitals in attracting medical tourists in particular was made.[6] Today, countries that plan to expand their gross national income by expanding the service market consider tourism to be the most important market with turnover, productive employment, and high marginal income.[7]

Results

Conclusion