Market Trends of Medical Tourism Industry
Cosmetic Treatment Type is Expected to Have Significant Share in the Market Over the Forecast Period
Cosmetic treatment is a group of medical procedures to improve a person's appearance, increase self-esteem, or address aesthetic concerns. They focus on areas such as skin care, body contouring, and facial rejuvenation. Medical tourism plays a significant role in the world of cosmetic treatments due to several key factors like offering individuals the opportunity to access high-quality cosmetic procedures at a fraction of the cost they might incur in their home countries.
The growing self-awareness about aesthetic appearance and rising demand for cosmetic procedures are the key factors driving the segment growth, as people are opting more for these procedures in some other countries primarily due to the high cost of cosmetic procedures in their residing country. For instance, according to the data published by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) in September 2023, about 14.98 million surgical and 18.86 million non-surgical cosmetic procedures were performed globally in 2022, of which the highest number of procedures were reported in the age group of 35-50 years (about 4.4 million procedures), followed by the 18-34 years (about 2.2 million procedures). This shows the signficiant demand for cosmetic procedures globally which likely to propel the market growth over the study perod.
Moreover, governments and companies are investing heavily to develop the medical tourism industry and boost cosmetic medical tourism in their home countries, which is also projected to play a significant role in the growth of segment as with the new investments and launches, there will be more improvement in the infrastructure, leading to increase in the influx of medical tourists seeking cosmetic treatment. For instance, in March 2023, in Indonesia, GC Bio group launched their medical aesthetic clinic NULOOK on Bali Island, which will provide comprehensive K-beauty aesthetic procedures based on bio-medical technology and establish the region as a major cosmetic medical tourism hub. Thus, owing to the growing demand and number of cosmetic procedures and the launch of new cosmetic or aesthetic clinics or departments in countries that offer cosmetic procedures at a very reasonable cost is expected to drive the segment's growth over the forecast period.
Asia-Pacific is Expected to have Largest Share in the Market Over the Forecast Period
The major factor attributed to the growth of the studied market in the region is the presence of world-class hospital infrastructure, advanced medical technology, expert skills, compliance with international quality standards, and reduced cost of medical treatment as compared to many other developed countries. In addition, the rising focus of the government to promote medical tourism with high-quality services is also expected to boost the market growth over the forecast period.
As per an article published by NITI Ayog in June 2023, it was observed that India scored 69.80 on the Medical Tourism Index with an offering of over 200 types of medical services ranging from fertility treatments to skincare. In addition to the above context, treatment including cardiovascular surgeries, cancer treatment, and organ transplant surgeries are 65-90% cheaper as compared to the United States, and Europe. Thus, the low cost of surgeries and treatment in India is expected to attract more foreign nationals to the country which in turn is anticipated to fuel the growth of the medical tourism market over the forecast period.
Furthermore, the establishment of new hospitals for offering medical treatments and services to medical tourists in the country is expected to attract more tourists who seek medical treatment. Hence, anticipated to contribute to market growth. For instance, in November 2021, China planned to launch a new Islands Hospital in Macau that offers services to medical travelers. The new facility is expected to launch in 2023. Therefore, owing to factors such as increasing government initiatives to promote medical tourism, the development of new medical tourism hospitals, and the growing number of medical tourists in the region the studied market is expected to grow over the forecast period.
