FAQs

While seeking treatment abroad, it is advisable to take advice from such companies who are patient centric, adhere to the highest international standards and best practices. At Health Travellers Worldwide (HTW), with patient well-being as the top priority, our approach is neutral to the choices made by patients after one has evaluated the opinions. HTW paves the way to help you take the right decisions. Backed by a professional team, we have created our proprietary PGC™ – a unique tool comprising of a matrix of leading doctor & hospitals across, key specialties based on extensive experiences and feedback from patients.

We specialize in handling complex and critical cases, including those rejected by internationally reputed healthcare institutions. We specialize in Quaternary care. We take pride and inspiration from the remarkable medical outcome of our patients post treatment.

Medical tourists travel to leading medical destinations of the world for a wide range of procedures, from purely elective ones such as face lifts, liposuction, tummy tucks, bariatric/weight-loss surgery, etc., to very high-end, complex and critical procedures such as organ transplants, cancer treatment, neurosurgery, joint replacements, paediatric and cardiac surgeries to name a few. All such medical / surgical procedures are routinely performed by top hospitals in healthcare destinations in a safe and effective manner, and with virtually no waiting time compared to what patients would have to face back in their home countries. You can find accurate and up to date information about many of the common procedures handled by HTW on our website in the “Specialties” section.

Health Travellers Worldwide offers the following healthcare advisory services:

1. Medical Consultation
2. Second Medical Opinion
3. Patient Airlift/Air Ambulance
4. Transfers & Hospitalization
5. Concierge Services
6. Tele-consultation
7. Medical Travel Portal
8. Flying Out Doctors Abroad for Surgeries
9. Organizing International Conferences
10. Medical Training
11. Rare Diseases
12. Hospital Advisory
13. Financial Assistance

The medical consultation procedure usually takes around 48-72 working hours. In some cases, it might take longer. The turnaround time greatly depends on the complexity of the case and we encourage our doctors to spend as much time as necessary to arrive at a conclusion so that you can be given a detailed medical opinion along with all the logistics information.

If you have medical records/test results/prescriptions/scans etc. you can share it via Email, WhatsApp, Skype / Tele-medicine - whichever is convenient for you. Alternatively, we also provide our clients with unique login credentials and password to access our secure medical travel portal, where you can share and permanently save all your medical records.

If you do not have any records you do not have to worry. You can get in touch with us via Phone Number: +91 91763 90909 Whatsapp Business: +91 73580 74795 Email: info@healthtravellersworldwide.com Or request a call back by clicking here to discuss the best way forward. After understanding your current problem we will consult with the doctor and let you know which investigations you can perform in your country and send us the reports.

If you have medical records in your local language, HTW can get them translated to English and get medical opinions from the doctors and hospitals and have them sent to you. We have a team of professional translators, familiar with medical terminology to ensure error free, accurate translation.

When you are faced with serious health decisions about advanced treatment options, an online second opinion can give you peace of mind. You can confirm the treatment which has been suggested to you by your primary doctor or the second opinion consultant may suggest an alternate treatment that may work better for your condition. It has the added benefit of receiving a detailed medical opinion at your home without having to travel a long distance for a second doctor’s consultation.

In our experience, although cost is ONE of the important factors to consider, the more important things that you should base your decision on are selection of the doctor and the hospital where you will be treated. More than cost, it is the medical outcome that would matter at the end of the day. HTW provides you with transparent healthcare advisory services on the best doctors and hospitals available to suit your particular needs.

If one were to use the cost of medical procedures in the US as a benchmark, the cost of procedures in countries like India, Singapore and UAE would be about 10% to 30% of the cost in the US. This being said, the quality of care at the centers that HTW recommends, are on par with any world-class hospital.

HTW works with the best doctors available in the locations where we are present. We empanel doctors with international qualifications in their field of expertise and those who have shown impeccable track records in terms of medical outcomes. Our association with specialists is long-term – we have been working with many specialists for over 2 decades now.

You can speak to a doctor in a foreign country through a tele-consultation session that HTW can organize for you. This allows you to have a face-to-face discussion with the doctor, allowing the doctor to better examine you clinically and you can clarify any remaining doubts about your treatment and assure yourself that you feel absolutely confident of the doctor’s experience, credentials and abilities. Please speak to one of our Patient Executives at +91 91763 90909 or Whatsapp us or write to us at info@healthtravellersworldwide.com to fix a tele-consultation appointment.* *Tele-consultation will depend upon availability and discretion of the doctors on a case-to-case basis.

We work with the most reputed doctors, so that you can make a medical decision with total confidence. HTW is an independent healthcare advisory firm that provides you with options of the best doctors and hospitals for your particular case. If you are considering a major surgery, dealing with a chronic illness or facing a life threatening disease, our doctors, who are highly specialized in their fields, will recommend you to take the treatment best suited for you so that you have the most effective recovery/outcome. In today’s age of marketing hyperbole everyone claims to be the best, world-class, etc. It is extremely necessary to verify if someone is actually as good as they claim. At HTW, we researchs extensively before suggesting a hospital or doctor to our clients, evaluating healthcare providers using our proprietary PGC™ – Patient Guidance Compass. This is a unique analytical tool comprising of a matrix of leading doctors & hospitals across key specialties, based on cumulative knowledge and extensive experience of our Specialist Medical Advisors as well as the documented feedback from our patients around the world. We share detailed information of the doctor and hospital along with the medical opinion given by them so you know exactly what you are getting. The final decision is yours – we advise and you decide.

Yes! We would never advice you to be treated at a hospital that we are not convinced about. At HTW, we have created our proprietary PGC™ – Patient Guidance Compass, a unique analytical tool comprising of a matrix of leading doctors & hospitals across key specialties, based on cumulative knowledge and extensive experience of our Specialist Medical Advisors as well as the documented feedback from our patients around the world. In addition to the PGC™, we also check the following parameters before choosing the hospital:

• Multidisciplinary approach to patient care
• Dedicated paediatric treatment facility
• Range of specialties
• Dedicated International Patients Services
• Team experienced in handling international patients
• Range of services available
• Number of Intensive Care Units
• 24/7 emergency care
• Emergency protocol
• Quality of medical & nursing staff
• Quality Assurance / Accreditation Program
• Tumor Board
• Number of international patients treated
• Success rates
• Infection Control Committee

There are innumerable health conditions and medical procedures making it virtually impossible to cover every single one of them in-depth on the website. Please do get in touch with us at +91 91763 90909 to speak to one of our Case Managers for a no-obligations discussion about your specific medical condition and how HTW can assist you in managing the same. You could also write to us at info@healthtravellersworldwide.com or request a call back by providing your details here.

Such advice is certainly not uncommon. There are a whole host of reasons ranging from considered, measured and well-intended to inadequately informed and anecdotal to down-right self-serving. Thus, while it is very important to give due consideration to the advice of your local doctor, it is equally necessary to take everything with a pinch of salt, researchs all available options and analyze them rationally and logically before reaching a decision. Rest assured that your doctor’s opinion is not the final word. If fact, you may be surprised to learn about what is possible in terms of quality of medical outcomes / cost that your local hospital /doctor may have failed to tell you about due to lack of information. That is why, at HTW, we present options to our clients along with their pros and cons and allow them to make a fully informed decision themselves.

We have assisted several thousand patients over the past two decades to travel from various countries abroad for treatments ranging from Organ Transplants, Brain/Spine Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, and various other serious medical procedures. Thus, in general, it is safe to travel, and we make arrangements to manage any specific risks associated with travelling for treatment of a particular disease. Please do get in touch with our team at info@healthtravellersworldwide.com so that we can arrange a medical opinion for your specific medical condition from a specialist doctor.

The length of stay after surgery/treatment depends upon the condition of the patient. If it is a minor procedure you can go back after 3-4 days of the procedure but in complicated cases it varies from case to case. For example, a patient who has undergone a liver transplant may be required to stay in the country of treatment for a few months.

One of the many advantages of having an experienced healthcare advisor like HTW for your medical travel needs is that we have, over the years, handled every possible crisis imaginable for patients travelling abroad for treatment. We have developed our own checks and balances and operating protocols to ensure that we minimize any chance of an avoidable surprise event occurring, resulting in unnecessary inconvenience to the client. Especially for high risk cases, we do a thorough analysis to spell out the possible risks and make adequate preparations to deal with them if they do materialize and offer assistance to our clients to manage the same.

We are an NABH accredited healthcare advisory firm that helps critically ill patients seeking quality healthcare abroad. Patient well-being is our priority. We do not represent any particular hospital, but work independently to provide a prospective patient with personalized advice and support and maintain strict confidentiality. We specialize in handling complex & critical cases, including those rejected by internationally reputed healthcare institutions, and take pride and inspiration from the remarkable medical outcomes of our patients post treatment. Our mission is to encourage a transparent collaborative approach for better awareness, knowledge & experience for health travellers, in order for them to make more informed decisions & for us to make a positive impact on individuals, families & the society. We are a registered company in India, working with the objective of offering honest & expert advisory services to health travellers & connect them to the top tertiary care destinations worldwide. The testimonials from our patients say the rest.

You are under no obligation to go through HTW or any other advisor, consultant, intermediary or agency to connect with hospitals. The primary value of using the services of a medical tourism service agency or an independent healthcare advisory firm like HTW lies in the fact that we empower you to make the best possible decision for your healthcare needs by providing you timely, accurate and reliable information which you otherwise might not have access to. Using our services, you can, at the click of a button, get multiple medical opinions from super specialists for your particular ailment, along with the cost estimates, and approximate length of stay required. Not only do we do this researchs for you and present our findings to you transparently, we also arrange for face-to-face tele-consultation* between you and the doctor to help you make the final decision with full confidence. There have been innumerable instances where patients have managed to lower expenses substantially due to our advice, or more importantly, found the correct treatment when they had given up hope and resigned themselves to an inferior quality of life. Along with the above, we take care of every single detail, right from arranging proper VISAs for the patient and all accompanying members, booking tickets, accommodation, airport pick-up and drop, appointment with the doctor, foreigner registration as applicable in the country of treatment, completing all required documentation and paperwork from the embassies, medical and ethics committees etc. for patients in need of organ transplants, any required VISA extensions, money exchange etc. Over and above, there are also several aspects of follow-up care upon the return of patients back to the country, which we assist with to ensure that any eventuality they may face is taken care of by us. Many patients do not realize that getting the best possible value and long-term outcome from medical travel is not as simple as contacting a hospital abroad and flying down for treatment. There are innumerable moving parts in the whole scheme of things which are best managed by a professional, competent, knowledgeable and experienced team who works impartially and independently on YOUR behalf. If you feel comfortable and confident handling all the above by yourself or believe that it is sufficient to just contact a hospital and take their medical opinion as the final word without doing further researchs you could be putting your health, well-being and money at risk. Further we have negotiated rates with logistics partners for Hotels, transport, etc. which are passed on to our patients, thus SAVINGS for our patients. *Tele-consultation will depend upon availability and discretion of the doctors on a case-to-case basis.

Your privacy is important to us and because of this we have taken strict confidentiality measures. None of the information you provide to us will be shared with a third party without your written consent. The Patient Consent required for HTW to provide you with the medical consultation gives us permission to use your medical information only for obtaining a medical opinion. All personal health information submitted to us is sent using secure methods and all records are immediately stored in a secure database. We treat all your personal and medical information as confidential.

Again, one of the many advantages of having an experienced healthcare advisor like HTW for your medical travel needs, is that we can help you reorganize your itinerary when you are abroad, should the need arise. We can help you with reorganizing your stay, air tickets, etc.

Yes, you can use the insurance if your insurance company allows you to undergo treatment in a foreign country. We would need to verify your insurance with our network hospital to know whether the insurance company has a tie up with them.

We are glad you asked! With hundreds of agents / facilitators / and “medical tourism” companies which keep popping up, floating around and disappearing, all the while making unsubstantiated claims, our biggest asset and differentiating factor is the sheer number and variety of patients that we have served over the years. In all likelihood, we have at least one if not several patients who we can get you in touch with to share their candid experience with our services for treatment of a medical condition similar to yours and residing in a city/country near you.

While there is an extremely remote chance of something like this happening, if any such unlikely situation arises, HTW will make every effort to provide you with necessary assistance to manage the situation, and address all your concerns in the best possible way. However, please note that all assistance provided at the request of the client will be governed according to the rules, regulations and law pertaining to the country and what is legally permissible, especially in cases of Visa, Foreigner Registration, and Money Transfer etc.

If you bring one relative with you, he/she will be able to stay with you during the hospital stay. Apart from that there are hotels near all our network hospitals where the attendants can stay during the treatment of the patients. The cost will range from USD 25 to USD 100 per day (in India), depending upon your preference.

Absolutely! Please understand that all our services are designed to assist you as much as possible in minimizing the amount of time, effort and money you need to spend while traveling abroad for treatment, while ensuring that you get the best possible medical outcomes, service and comfort. The idea is to use our experience, resources and knowledge to help you with all the critical and allied aspects of your medical travel so that you can focus on getting back to good health without having to get bogged down with logistical details. However, you are under no obligation to accept our recommendations, advice or services and are free to make your own independent arrangements for travel.

India is the leading destination for medical travelers across the world for a wide range of procedures, from purely elective ones such as face lifts, liposuction, tummy tucks, bariatric/weight-loss surgery, breast augmentation etc., to very high-end, complex and critical procedures such as Organ Transplants, Cancer Treatment, Neurosurgery, Joint Replacements, Paediatric and Cardiac Surgeries to name a few. All such medical / surgical procedures are routinely performed by select Indian Hospitals in a safe and effective manner for a fraction of the cost and with virtually no waiting time compared to what patients would have to face back in their home countries. You can find accurate and up to date information about many of the common procedures handled by HTW on our website in the “Specialities” section.

At HTW, we researchs extensively before suggesting a hospital or doctor in any city to our clients, evaluating healthcare providers using our proprietary PGC™ – Patient Guidance Compass. This is a unique analytical tool comprising of a matrix of leading doctors & hospitals across key specialties, based on cumulative knowledge and extensive experience of our Specialist Medical Advisors as well as the documented feedback from our patients around the world.  We also have information available on our website for all the locations where we have our network hospitals. The final decision is yours – we advise and you decide.

Yes absolutely. Dubai is emerging as a major healthcare destination on the world map of medical tourism especially for advanced elective treatments in niche specialties. Overseas medical tourists are seeking treatments in the areas of cosmetic surgery, orthopedics, sports medicine, ophthalmology, dental, dermatology, wellness & preventive health Check-ups as well as assisted reproductive techniques and weight loss management & surgeries. To assist patients, it has formed the Dubai Health Experience (DXH) under the Dubai Health Authority with assurance of quality of service and unparalleled reassurances guarantee even after the treatment ends. We have tied up with the largest private healthcare Company in the UAE for our patients seeking treatment abroad.

With the establishment of world class institutions for cardiology, diabetes, ophthalmology and cancer care, sizeable number of patients from the GCC, Russia, Africa and Asia sub-continent are travelling for treatment to Abu Dhabi. The Health Authority-Abu Dhabi (HAAD) and Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) are jointly developing best-in-class service providers for patients and families with holistic services while being treated in the Emirate.

You are under no obligation to go through HTW or any other advisor, consultant, intermediary, agency or facilitator to connect with hospitals. The primary value of using the services of an independent healthcare advisory firm like HTW lies in the fact that we empower you to make the best possible decision for your healthcare needs by providing you with timely, accurate and reliable information, which you otherwise might not have access to. Using our services, you can, at the click of a button compare the past outcomes, quality, infrastructure and services provided by various hospitals, the qualifications, credentials and experience of your treating doctor/surgeon, and get multiple medical opinions from super specialists for your particular ailment, along with the cost estimates and approximate length of stay required. Not only do we do this researchs for you and present our findings to you transparently, we also arrange for face-to-face tele-consultation* between you and the doctor to help you make the final decision with full confidence. There have been innumerable instances where patients have managed to reduce expenses substantially due to our advice, or more importantly, found the correct treatment when they had given up hope and resigned themselves to an inferior quality of life. Along with the above, we take care of every single detail right from arranging proper VISAs for the patient and all accompanying members, booking tickets, accommodation, airport pick-up and drop, appointment with the doctor, foreigner registration as applicable in the country of treatment, completing all required documentation and paperwork from the embassies, medical and ethics committees, etc. for patients in need of organ transplants, any required VISA extensions, money exchange etc. Over and above, there are also several aspects of follow-up care upon the return of patients back to the country which we assist with, to ensure that any eventuality they may face is taken care of by us. Many patients do not realize that getting the best possible value and long-term outcome from medical travel is not as simple as contacting a hospital abroad and flying down for treatment. There are innumerable moving parts in the whole scheme of things which are best managed by a professional, competent, knowledgeable and experienced team who works impartially and independently on YOUR behalf. If you feel comfortable and confident handling all the above by yourself or believe that it is sufficient to just contact a hospital and take their medical opinion as the final word without doing further researchs you could be putting your health, well-being and money at risk. We also have negotiated rates with logistics Companies for Accommodation, transport, etc. which are passed on thus SAVINGS for our patients. *Tele-consultation will depend upon availability and discretion of the doctors on a case-to-case basis.

Please get in touch with our Case Manager for a detailed discussion on this and for necessary guidance on the process to be followed, required documentation / paperwork to be completed etc.

Accommodation arrangements can be made for your family at hotels / guest houses or serviced apartments near the hospital.

You should keep the valuables and money in the safe given by the hotel at all times. If you are admitted in the hospital we would recommend that you keep them under lock in the locker to be on the safer side.

Yes. But you would have to bear the expenses. HTW can assist with arrangements for the medical checkup.

All the hospitals normally operate from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (IST) on Weekdays. The Emergency department in all the hospitals operates 24 hrs and in case of any problems you can visit the hospital emergency directly.

You would need to obtain a Medical Visa to avail treatment.

We will be able to help you with the Medical Visa Invitation Letter from the hospital which you can show at the Embassy in your country. It will help the Embassy officials understand your condition and expedite your visa process.

Make sure you are up-to-date on routine vaccines before every trip. These vaccines include measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, polio vaccine, and your yearly flu shot. Hepatitis A: You can get hepatitis A through contaminated food or water regardless of where you are eating or staying. Typhoid: You can get typhoid through contaminated food or water. CDC recommends this vaccine for most travelers, especially if you are staying with friends or relatives, visiting smaller cities or rural areas, or if you are an adventurous eater. Malaria: We would suggest that the patient ask their doctor what vaccines and medicines you need before, during, and after your trip to prevent malaria, especially if you are visiting low-altitude areas. Hepatitis B: You can get hepatitis B through blood products, so it is recommended to get vaccinated if you are undergoing any medical procedures. Yellow Fever: The government of India requires proof of yellow fever vaccination only if you are arriving from a country with risk of yellow fever.

All payments will be made by you directly to the relevant parties like Hospitals, Accommodation Providers and Ticketing Agents etc. without HTW playing any intermediary role. You are under no obligation to transfer any money to HTW in advance or at any point before, during or after your treatment for any service not directly rendered to you by the team / staff / management of HTW. Please note that no employee of HTW is authorized to accept any payment in cash/kind/electronic bank transfer in his/her personal bank account. Please do inform the management if you are approached by any member of HTW with such a request.

You are allowed to carry USD 5000 in cash with you to travel to India. If more than that is required for the treatment, you can deposit the money in the hospital bank account and it will be used for your treatment once you arrive at the hospital.

Generally, Pickup from the airport will be arranged by HTW either by a vehicle or by an ambulance as per the patient’s requirement. If for some reasons, Pick up is not arranged, we shall inform accordingly.

Apart from the usual treatment related services we also offer pre-negotiated rates from various accommodation, local transport, pharmacy, hotels, restaurants etc. You can avail these services at a discounted price and save costs. You may call our Patient Service Managers to know more at +91 91763 90909.

You will need a valid Medical Visa, Passport, passport sized photographs, any National Identification other than passport, return ticket, hotel booking/accommodation details etc.

If your trip is a planned trip wherein HTW has all your arrival details and medical details prior to your arrival, then all appointments/meetings with doctors will be arranged by HTW.

Usually your Case Manager will ensure that follow-up appointments are fixed for you at the time of discharge. In case you do not receive any information about follow-up appointments, you can get in touch with your Case Manager and it will be organized.

You can stay at a hotel / guest house or serviced apartment near the hospital after discharge from the hospital.

Yes the patient will be transferred from his/her bed in the facility where he/she is presently admitted and will be delivered to the bed of the receiving facility. There will be a ground ambulance to bring the patient to the airport and another to take the patient from the airport to the receiving hospital. The level of care provided during the ground transport and during the flight will be in all likelihood the same.

The cost will vary depending on: type of aircraft, distance, medical staff required by the patient, medical supplies and ground ambulance charges. International transports will be subject to additional costs such as: foreign ground handling fees and taxes, overseas air traffic control charges, flight permits, crew overnight expenses etc. Hence the cost can only be decided depending upon the patient’s condition at the time of transfer. We are regularly air lifting patients through reliable Air Ambulance Companies successfully.

Our Online Health Portal is the latest technological development in our efforts to be pioneers in this industry and provide the most professional and transparent experience to our patients. It provides real time access to information about the patients and serves as an effective platform to disseminate information, while establishing seamless communication with various stakeholders like patient, patient’s relatives, Ministries of Health/Ministries of Defence, Insurance Cos., NGOs and International Corporates-payors who refer patients for treatment abroad.

For registering in the HTW Online Portal you can contact our office at +91 91763 90909 or mail us at info@healthtravellersworldwide.com. We will send you the Login details after which you will be able to Register and upload your reports in the portal which can be seen by the executives at our end. You can track the reports of the patient and receive further communication by the way of the portal.

Our Flying-Out Doctors Program offers medical assistance including Surgeries Abroad to remote locations where there is lack of medical expertise. We work on project basis and currently working under the aegis of Ministry of Health, Iraq to serve their patients. We are expanding further to include other such regions in our program. If an organization or government body is interested we can collaborate with them to bring this program to their country. For individual needs in places beyond our work, we suggest you contact our office at +919176390909 or mail us at surgeriesabroad@healthtravellersworldwide.com so that we can help you know more.