?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.title=Study+of+the+Knowledge%2C+Attitude+and+Experience+of+Medical+Tourism+Among+Target+Groups+with+Special+Emphasis+on+South+India&rft.creator=A%2C+Rajeev&rft.creator=Latif%2C+Sanam&rft.subject=Online+Journal+of+Health+and+Allied+Sciences&rft.description=Medical+tourism+aims+at+providing+cost-effective+customized+health+care+in+collaboration+with+the+tourism+industry+in+distant+locations+wherein+the+hospitality+component+is+handled+efficiently+so+that+fixing+appointments%2C+making+arrangements+for+accommodation+and+other+logistics+become+hassle-free+for+the+patient.+This+allows+more+concentration+on+the+procedure+at+hand+and+the+interaction+between+the+medical+fraternity+and+the+patient+becomes+smoother.+More+and+more+hospitals+in+India+are+gearing+up+to+provide+such+services+to+neighbouring+countries+and+even+to+the+developed+nations+across+the+world.+The+purpose+of+this+study+was+to+study+the+knowledge%2C+attitude+and+experiences+of+the+population+of+a+suitable+cross-section+regarding+the+emerging+scenario+of+medical+tourism+with+special+interest+vis-%C3%A0-vis+Non+Resident+Indians+(NRIs)+specifically+to+the+state+of+Karnataka+and+Mangalore+in+particular.+It+was+found+that+compared+to+the+locals+(kannadigas+or+non-kannadigas)%2C+the+Non-resident+Indians+were+more+dissatisfied+with+the+health+care+facilities+available+in+their+proximity.+Though+a+majority+of+them+do+have+medical+insurance%2C+it+still+looks+as+if+the+care+is+more+cost-effective+when+sourced+to+India.+NRIs+are+more+aware+of+the+potential+of+medical+tourism+through+their+communication+with+the+medical+fraternity+as+well+as+the+general+public+and+11.1%25+of+NRIs+have+really+utilized+the+services+of+medical+tourism.+An+e-mail+survey+which+was+also+conducted+among+a+number+of+foreigners+yielded+the+interesting+fact+that+they+indeed+had+a+greater+awareness+regarding+medical+tourism+with+an+emphasis+on+health+tourism.+The+reason+why+these+foreigners+opted+for+medical+tourism+was+due+to+the+substandard+medical+care+available+in+their+locality%2C+rather+than+due+to+the+cost+of+medical+care+as+such.&rft.publisher=Kakkilaya+BS&rft.contributor=Kakkilaya%2C+Dr.+Srinivas&rft.date=2009-09-08&rft.type=Journal+(On-line%2FUnpaginated)&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fcogprints.org%2F6672%2F1%2F2009-2-6.pdf&rft.identifier=++A%2C+Rajeev+and+Latif%2C+Sanam++(2009)+Study+of+the+Knowledge%2C+Attitude+and+Experience+of+Medical+Tourism+Among+Target+Groups+with+Special+Emphasis+on+South+India.++%5BJournal+(On-line%2FUnpaginated)%5D+++++&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fcogprints.org%2F6672%2F