Treatment in Chennai: Thank you thank you thank you

annerobyn

I have just returned from 3 weeks in Chennai with my brother who, through Surgical Tourism Canada, had a spinal fusion done at the Apollo Hospital.
Surgery was a success, and we have been overwhelmed with the warmth, caring and generosity of the people we have met along the way.
Through IndiaMike.com I was fortunate enough to meet 2 of its members who made my journey so memorable I feel honoured to have met them and spend time with them.
If you are considering going to India for surgery do your homework and although a scary proposition initially, we would do it all over again. We made the right decision and highly recommend the process to anyone who needs it.

capt_mahajan

Annerobyn, real glad things worked out well for you and your brother

puchoo

glad to know that things panned out the way you wanted them!

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Sidharth

puchoo.wordpress.com

brownboy66

Hi AnneRobyn. Excellent news, and glad things worked out. I've moved your thread here so that it gets a bit more visibility - and so that people know events worked out so well in Chennai.

venkat83

Nice.

India is indeed one of the best for medicine (and also med-tourism). Its cheap and the quality is quranteed.

Hope that you will be here next time as a 'normal' tourist

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atala

It is beneficial that you are posting here for others to read who might google for it that you found help in an excellent medical institution in India.

I have seen Michael Moore's "Sicko" (documentary on the sick state of medical services in the U.S.) on an Emirates' flight to South Asia. It gave the impression that the situation is much better in Canada, but I later heard from a Canadian whom I met that it is almost as bad to get help in Canada as it is in the U.S. May many people find help in India who are suffering unnecessarily and dieing prematurely in the U.S. due to the lack and inaffordability of medical services there.

Nick-H

It is cheaper.

There is no more guarantee of quality than anywhere else in the world --- but certainly no reason why Indian treatment should not be just as good either. My Chennai 'family' doctor not only works in UK for part of each year, he teaches doctors there.

I am very happy that Anne and her brother were not only delighted with the quality of medical treatment and care that he received, but also that (although her brother's ability to see much of it was limited) that they really enjoyed their visit to Chennai.

It's fascinating that here are two people to whom India itself was quite incidental to their trip --- but they really enjoyed it

Come Back Soon!

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atala

It is a lot cheaper than anywhere in the world, worlds apart in terms of money. A friend's colonectomy (cutting out a piece of colon) was 16'000 Rupees (15 years ago) at Apollo Chennai. That was then about 600 US Dollars. Even if it doubled meanwhile, which I doubt, it would still be no comparison to what it would have cost in the West.

Surgery for a sciatica cost 16'000 US Dollars in the U.S. in 2007. No idea how much Anne and her brother paid for their surgery, but certainly only a fraction of the amount mentioned here.

Nick-H

In fifteen years? You can probably add zeros, never mind doubled!

atala

As a British person who got everything for free you may not be aware how much medical services cost. For heart surgery the average price in India is around 5000 dollars. In the U.S. a bypass costs on average 20'000 dollars. That is a lot less.

Nick-H

I'm not arguing about the differential; of course India is cheaper. I've had private treatment in UK, and the very idea of what people pay in USA is frightening.

That differential made an operation affordable (although still expensive) for Anne's brother.

But Rs16,000 wouldn't buy you much at Apollo these days, in terms of in-patient care or surgery.

capt_mahajan

Recently, about 2.5 lakhs was spent in 18 days at a similar hospital in Delhi without any surgery- though things were critical and a battery of tests and procedures were done.

Things aint cheap in Kansas anymore.

And I spare a thought for the millions in India, who can't get any kind of medical care, not even a visit to a general practitioner.

Nick-H

Oh right....

Bring Kansas into it.

That's just great!

Sama

two years ago I spent almost three days in the hospital with gastroenteritis (they originally thought it was a blocked small intestine) -- no surgery, one GI scan, two x-rays, saw my own doctor once, constant IVs, no food.

$20,000.

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edwardseco

Its a bit hard to tell. I am a dincis, double income within system, so what doesn't get paid by my insurance gets paid by the spousal coverage. One time I didn't have insurance and simply negotiated with cash. The price came roaring down from 4000 to 1200 and the doctor came up with some free services. Paying full retail is dumb. An Iranian friend and business partner was visting and had a tragic stroke when he was in his 20's. Months of intensive care ran up 250,000. All of that was paid by mediCal because they realized I didn't have that kind of do re mi. Its a complex and rather insane system where our taxes and insurance payments go..