Indian Medical Tourism: COVID-19 Situation, Planning and Reviving Approaches

Abstract

The COVID-19 has caused a devastating impact on human life worldwide. The result has nearly frozen the cross-border traveling after travel restrictions (Ghosh, Post COVID-19 strategy to survive the tourism industry: Indian perspective. Retrieved from: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/102808/ . Accessed 6 July 2021, 2020). Because of this pandemic, like other travel and tourism sectors, the medical tourism sector got badly affected around the world. The selling and buying of health care services across the globe were restricted which was a major setback to the medical tourism sector (Stackpole et al., Looking around the corner: COVID-19 shocks and market dynamics in US medical tourism. Int J Health Plann Manag. https://doi.org/10.1002/hpm.3259 , 2021). Similarly, the Indian medical tourism sector was also got affected because of this pandemic. It needs special attention from the medical tourism planners and competent authorities to make and/or adopt strategies for its revival. The effective planning and management of medical tourism in India are imperative during these challenging times. Because it is contributing to the Indian economy, employment, health care, tourist arrivals, destination image, etc. Hence, there is a need for proper multi-dimensional planning approaches to recover the country’s medical tourism sector where various stakeholders’ significant role is required. Therefore, this study provides some imperative planning strategies for the resumption and expansion of medical tourism in India.