ANALYSIS | medical tourism | But cosmetic surgery traffic is


increasingly moving outside the uK. dr mcKeever says that nowadays approximately half of her consultations result in patients eventually going abroad for surgery. 'only 4–5 years ago, i would have never seen a patient go abroad,' she says. she endorses the BaaPs’ exhortations


for patients to check that their chosen surgeon has received advanced training, but also observes that overseas surgeons can do most procedures that uK-based surgeons offer. she recommends that patients remain in the eu, and stresses that they should check what is available in terms of before and after care. ms chouaib’s secret surgery company


has recognised the need for and value of such an approach. Her business operates a service for females that essentially comprises a consultation in Harley street, london, and the surgery done in Poland, with a fully female team including a female anaesthetist. every patient is different, and catering


for individuals’ preferences is vital. they must be offered all options and be able to feel relaxed and confident about what is going on, including asking questions. Giving over control, or at least joint decision-making, is part of the reason why practices today become commercially successful. For certain surgeries, overseas travel


packages can be several thousand pounds cheaper than equivalent procedures offered in the uK. that has been the experience of ms chouaib, who offers solutions for patients who do not feel accommodated by local practitioners. the


established


operators see such businesses


as a


competitive threat, which potentially remove part of their client base. But others see it as an opportunity. For instance, secret surgery began in November 2010 when ms chouaib crystallised what was initially a hobby into a business. Her website-based company seeks to facilitate surgery overseas by making all the arrangements, interacting with surgeons and helping with the predictable language barriers for prospective cosmetic surgery patients.


14 ❚


Patient care 'Patients need large amounts of support and mentoring. You need to feel able to talk through your concerns — including moral concerns,' says ms chouaib. this can happen both during the consultation and at the hospital in Wroclaw. the unit offers a full range of plastic and cosmetic


surgeries,


including hair transplants, as well as services such as obesity surgery. the focus is customer


service and price. 'a lot of people cannot afford uK prices. a 3-night hospital stay for a tummy tuck in Poland costs £2800 with secret surgery, against £8500 at comparable uK prices,' says ms chouaib. demand is apparent from the


180 000 hits that her website received in the November 2010–January 2011 post-launch period. With a view to tailoring the package to


every patient is


different, and catering for individuals’ preferences is


vital. they must be offered all options and be able to feel


relaxed and confident about what is going on, including asking questions.


the customer, secret surgery also addresses niche markets, such as the 'Pink Pound' market, for gay consumers; the 'Yummy mummy' market, for mothers with children who cannot depart in term time but who can build, say, a tummy tuck and a breast lift into a 14-night family holiday in Poland during the summer months for £6000 (against a £10 500– 12 000 equivalent price in the uK); and the early retirees market — the 50–60-year-olds who may have higher levels of disposable income. there may, of course, be


cultural issues as well as personal preferences. While these are taken seriously, the extent to which they are not met to


the client’s satisfaction has fuelled the growing trend of niche operators offering medical tourism cosmetic surgery packages. ms chouaib’s business also caters for


muslim customers, who may have special cultural or religious reasons for wanting to keep their surgery low profile.


November/December 2011 | prime-journal.com


reconstructive plastic surgery is accepted under islam, but cosmetic surgery is frowned on, so it is something of a delicate matter. these clients can choose secret surgery’s tunisian destination. the company is unique in the uK for offering the service to muslims.


Educating the market 'What we are doing is educating people, giving them all the information and making sure they’ve made the right choice. We give them confidence,' she says. 'We’ve shaken up attitudes. our customers are not being ‘sold to’. it’s the little things that make the difference — this is not just a financial transaction.' such businesses are successfully


exploiting a niche that is growing all the time. eventually, market forces will inevitably result in some equalisation of prices, but for the present, cosmetic surgery tourism businesses that offer high-quality surgery overseas and aftercare in their home country, with packages tailored to the patient’s needs, are both innovating and disrupting the market.


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