How does the UAE stay competitive with its more affordable rivals in the Middle East?
Reza Jamili, Founder & Editor in cheif
Among the popular destinations of medical tourism in the Middle east, the names of three countries stand above the others, seemingly irreplaceable, these being Iran, Turkey and the UAE.
And while Turkey and Iran use their own nationally produced medical knowledge and might in conjunction with maintaining low prices, the UAE entirely ignores this step and avoid regulating prices.
Still, the Emirates remain a formidable medical tourism power and one of the largest medical tourism destinations in the Middle East. In this article we go over the reasons for the popularity of medical tourism in the country despite high medical costs in the UAE.
Foreign Medical Personnel
UAE’s main competitors in the region, Iran and Turkey owe their success in the medical field to decades of nationally developed research and foreign education. The UAE in contrast has chosen to bypass this multi-decade long process.
The majority of the medical personnel and hospital staff in the UAE are from developed countries, namely European states and the US. Naturally their wages are much higher as well.
For example the personnel and medical staff, and even the entire board of directors of the American Hospital in Dubai are all of European and American stock. The living and housing costs of these immigrant doctors are calculated with high-valued currencies and therefore increase the costs of treatment as well.
Non-Native Hospitals in the UAE
The Aforementioned American Hospital is not the only one of its kind. In fact the majority of hospitals in the UAE and particularly in Dubai are not of native origins.
Also See: Top 5 Best Hospitals in Dubai
India, the United States and Europe are the largest contributors and exporters of medical services to the UAE healthcare. This is usually done in the form of famous hospital groups of these countries founding new hospitals in the UAE soil.
American Hospital in Dubai
The most notable of these foreign hospitals are the Thumbay hospital from India, the American Hospital and the Cleveland Clinic from the US and the German Saudi hospital from Germany.
These hospital groups are from the most developed countries in the world and bear world-class infrastructure and expensive equipment, another factor that contributes to the high costs of treatment in the UAE.
The Targeted Market of the Medical Tourism in the UAE
Another major factor that results in the higher costs of treatment in the UAE is the difference in its target patient base compared to that of its regional rivals.
Iran for example has set its target patient base on its neighboring states such as Azerbaijan, Iraq, Central Asian states and Syria.
Turkey has focused its marketing on countries North African states like Tunisia and Algeria but also on Balkan states. These countries are also largely considered to be part of the “developing category” and their citizens are not as rich either.
Related Articles:
Medical Care in the Middle East: What Treatments to Look For?
Top Medical Destinations in the Middle East
On the other hand, the UAE is the largest provider of medical services in the Persian Gulf, with the majority of its target audience being from fellow Arab states of the Gulf such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain. All of these states are among the richest countries of the world.
The difference of the wealth of the target patient base is another factor that results in the high costs of medical treatment in the UAE.
High Costs of National Healthcare and Insurance in the UAE
The majority of the UAE’s population consists of immigrants from South Asian countries like Indian and Pakistan, with native Arab making up for only 11 percent of the population.
Since 2009 the health insurance is made mandatory for all residents of the country, both immigrants and the native population. The yearly costs of this insurance is 4 thousand and seven hundred dollars which is the 7th highest in the world.
Advertisement of the Thumbay hospital, downtown Dubai
In medical tourism, the prices in the private sector are often determined and are based upon the prices of the public healthcare, with the prices of this public healthcare already being high, the private sector naturally has even more costs.
When we consider this alongside all the other aforesaid factors, we can get a much better understanding of why the costs of treatment in the UAE are so high.
Future of Medical Tourism in the UAE: Are the High Costs of Treatment a threat for the survival of the industry?
Considering the fact that there are two major medical powers in close proximity to the UAE that also provide their services for much cheaper, the question is whether medical tourism in the country at risk?
At closer glance we notice that the targeted patient market of the UAE is almost exclusive to them and not contested by Iran and Turkey. We also notice that medical tourism partners of the UAE are equally rich and happy to pay these high costs, while at the same time having extensive cultural Arab ties together.
Coupled with incredibly powerful branding and marketing of the hospitals in the UAE, we can confidently say that not only medical tourism in the UAE is not in risk, but when it comes to the Persian Gulf, it is in fact replaceable.
