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When Hernan Campos decided to trim a good bit of fat off his shoulders, belly and other pats of his body, he knew exactly who to turn to. (BTW, I checked with Hernan and he gave me full permission to share his story.) Hernan shed about 35 pounds in one treatment, provided by Costa Rica Medical, a San Jose-based, medical services organization that provides a wide range of cosmetic surgery and other popular procedures not generally covered by US insurance carriers. Hernan underwent a new, more advanced procedure called Vibroliposuction, a treatment that has not been approved yet by the FDA for usage in the United States.
Read more to find out how things went… .
Hernan said he was exhausted for several days after the surgery. (In fact, the concept of “medical tourism” is probably a misnomer. Most people coming to Costa Rica for surgery or other procedures are not exactly ready to spring off the operating table to check out one of the 26 micro-climates around the country or hike up to view stunning volcanoes.) Hernan admits he was anxious about the procedure but had developed significant trust in the 40-plus doctors that comprise the medical practice. Hernan credits his speedy recovery and overall success to the procedure itself – which is distinct from ordinary liposuction – because it produces less trauma to the body. The price tag? About $3,000. That’s about 10K less than ordinary liposuction in the states. (Breast enhancement goes for under $4,000 – compared to an average of $12,000 in the US.)
About 10,000 people came to Costa Rica last year to received medical treatment. Costa Rica Medical treated about 700 of those people. More than 95% of the patients come from the United States. “In the past, over 90% of people from the US coming here were interested in cosmetic surgery. Now about 50% ask about cosmetic surgery, but the rest are seeking other treatments. Americans are very serious about costs – and they require important procedures like Orthopedic surgery. These people are investigating quality and they are investigating costs.”
If you’re researching the Nearshore market for medical services, a good place to start is to review the JCI (Joint Commision International) accredited organizations based here. Two major hospitals in Costa Rica have received JCI accreditation and a third is soon to receive it.
In Hernan’s case, he knew personally he was in good hands.
These days, affordable surgeries done in other countries does not necessarily equal to low or bad quality procedures. For Cosmetic Surgery abroad, you can minimize risk by going to a medical tourism company like WorldMed Assist who will handle all the logistics and make your stay abroad as smooth as possible. WorldMed Assist only partners with hospitals after multi-day, on-site screening. Many of the top surgeons in their partner network were trained in the U.S., and most hospitals have affiliations with renowned US medical centers such as Johns Hopkins and Harvard Medical. Hospitals are squeaky clean, and their patients have rated their overseas accommodations as five star. Visit WorldMed Assist for more on Cosmetic Surgery abroad.