한국 찾는 외국인 환자 지속 증가…정부차원 통합서비스 제공<br /><br />South Korea's high-tech and affordable healthcare is attracting more foreign patients to the country. <br />And to make the most of this trend, the government has established medical information centers to try and attract more medical tourism from overseas. <br />Our Seo Eun-kyung reports.<br /> <br />More and more people from overseas are coming to South Korea for medical care and services, but many don't know where to turn to find affordable, quality care.<br />As a result,... the South Korean government has established information centers to help them out. <br />Located in the heart of Seoul, the Medical Korea Information Center provides foreign visitors with information on medical institutions throughout the country.<br />There's also a legal assistant who can help with medical disputes in five different languages -- English, Chinese, Japanese, Russian and Arabic.<br /> <br />"We mostly get Russian and Chinese visitors coming by. Russian patients want information on hospitals that can treat serious medical issues. Most of the Chinese come for consultations on cosmetic procedures."<br /><br />Foreign patients come to South Korea to benefit from medical technologies that may not be available in their home countries. <br />For example, health services related to obstetrics and gynecology are highly sought out by Russian visitors. <br />Since it's harder to find treatment in Russia for infertility, Russians come to South Korea to increase their chance of starting a family. <br /> <br />"We get people from many different countries, but mainly Russia, China and the U.S. There's a lot of demand for fertility tests, in vitro fertilization and for freezing eggs."<br /><br />Given the quality of treatment and the reasonable cost, the medical tourism industry in South Korea has seen exponential growth in recent years.<br />In 2009,... the number of foreign patients coming to South Korea was a mere 60-thousand.<br />Within the space of a decade that figure has jumped more than five-fold to over 320-thousand and it appears more and more people from around the world will keep coming. <br />To make things even more convenient,... the medical center opened a branch at Incheon International Airport a couple of months ago.<br />It allows foreign guests to get the medical information they need without even having to leave the airport.<br />Seo Eun-kyung, Arirang News <br />
