Foreign Patients Flock to Busan, Gangnam

Becoming a medical tourism hub isn't so simple. Not only must it provide the best medical service, it also has to have restaurants, hotels, historical sites, shopping districts and other tourists' attractions. A good transportation system and good environment are also essential.

Busan, the southern port city, and Gangnam, southern Seoul, have been hailed as perfect spots for medical tourism in that sense.

Just over nine months into the medical tourism industry, both districts have proved that they are capable of becoming leaders of a local market that is assumed to exceed 100 billion won.

Busan

Busan has long been visited by Japanese tourists arriving by ferry and flights for overnight shopping sprees and aesthetic therapies.

These days, alongside hair permanents, manicures and pedicures, the city is gearing up to provide cosmetic surgeries and other medical services. "There are many people who bring photos of Korean celebrities and ask for changes to be performed. Most of the time, they express satisfaction and recommend our clinic to their friends and even families," a spokesman of ABC Cosmetic Surgery was quoted as saying.

This year, the facility is stretching out to a broader spectrum of "patients." Local cosmetic surgeons and medical tourism brokers invited Russian medical insiders for a showcase late last year.

"We were able to convince them that our facilities and techniques are equal to those of the U.S. and many other leading nations, and the price is as competitive as it could be," the hospital spokesman said.

Industry insiders also say that Busan being accessible by many forms of transport is a huge plus, especially with the world's largest department store, Shinsegae Centum, and other hot tourist spots. Local fish markets as well as film studios are also recommendations from local tour guides.

The local government is also pushing to support the industry, which adds only the rosiest perspective to the business.

Gangnam, one of the most affluent areas in the country, has its strength in the dense population of medical facilities; they have over 35 percent of medical clinics or hospitals in Seoul, and more than 70 percent of the plastic surgeons in the city.

Top-class hotels such as the Ritz Carlton, Intercontinental, Park Hyatt, Marriott and others are located within a 20-minute drive while the business districts of Teheran Road at the district center has become a must-see for people who want to see the "now" of Seoul.

Hip restaurants are located along the avenues and the district authorities provide free bus tours around the business and shopping districts as well as having the Kimchi Museum, Bongeun Temple and other popular places.

According to the district office, the area saw a 25 percent jump in the number of foreign visitors to its clinics in one year.

"We have the best talent, good prices and a good view. We have it all," the district head Maeng Jung-ju told The Korea Times in a previous interview.

"I think the future is bright because Gangnam has everything at state-of-the-art form. So we will do fine," Kim Byung-gun, director of BK DongYang Plastic Surgery, said.

bjs@koreatimes.co.kr