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- Title
EVIL EYE MEDICAL TOURISM: SELF REPORTS OF LASER EYE SURGERY IN TURKEY.
- Authors
Moldovan, Mădălina; Haiduc, Ştefania Andra; Mitrea, Daniela-Rodica
- Abstract
Background: Medical tourism, or seeking medical treatment abroad, is prevalent in Turkey, particularly for laser eye surgery. Understanding the viewpoints held by patients who travel for medical purposes could allow local providers to align their services with those offered by international counterparts. Objective: This qualitative research analyzed web-based narratives from health travelers in Turkey, comparing them with locals who received similar treatments at the same clinics. The main question was: What can we learn about health travelers' experiences in Turkey through their online narratives? Secondary questions included: (1) What is the medical tourists' satisfaction with their treatments in Turkey? (2) Is dissatisfaction related to travel or medical aspects? Material and methods: A total of 40 narratives from medical tourists who visited Turkey (n=22), and locals who served as controls (n=18), were collected. Data were selected using purposeful sampling. Reviews meeting criteria were included: (1) written by the patient, according either maximum of five stars (12 from medical travelers, 10 from locals) or minimum of one star (10 from medical travelers, 8 from locals) (2) in English, and (3) describing the procedure. The analysis involved open coding to identify themes aligned with the research questions. NVivo Pro Version 11 (QSR International) was utilized to explore relationships. Results : Negative reviews from travelers were based on: both medical and travel-related factors (50%), travel and accommodation issues alone (30%, all associated with unexpected costs), and solely procedural concerns (20%). Eye laser procedures elicited similar levels of satisfaction (60%) and dissatisfaction (40%) among medical travelers. Medical dissatisfaction stemmed primarily from unsatisfactory results and incomplete vision restoration (60%), followed by complications, dry eye, photophobia, and corneal pain (30%), as well as lengthy procedures (10%). Locals expressed predominantly satisfaction with the medical procedures, with only 12% reporting dissatisfaction. As with travelers, unexpected costs were the main reason for dissatisfaction for locals (70%). Conclusions: Whilst locals express high satisfaction with eye laser procedures, medical travelers are split between satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction among travelers arises from unsatisfactory results, complications, lengthy procedures, and, most notably, unexpected costs.
- Subjects
TURKEY; ROMANIA; SELF-evaluation; SURGERY; PATIENTS; MEDICAL tourism; CONFERENCES &; conventions; LASER therapy; OPHTHALMIC surgery
- Publication
Acta Marisiensis. Seria Medica, 2024, Vol 70, p57
- ISSN
2668-7755
- Publication type
Article