Were You Given Bad Advice for Your Medical Tourism Startup? Can it be Turned Around?

Starting a medical tourism business seemed like a golden opportunity—until it wasn’t. Maybe you were lured in by flashy promises from consultants or trade association executives who guaranteed success as long as you paid them and attended their conferences? Perhaps you were led to believe you could bootstrap it, assuming that with a great team and strong vision, and an array of providers in several countries, the results would follow.

If you're reading this, chances are you've already discovered the hard truth: it's not that simple.

The reality of launching a medical tourism business—especially in a post-COVID world—is far more complicated than one might expect. For one thing, public health concerns now are among the punch list items we must incorporate into the strategy, policies, and precautions.

But I'll bet many of you were probably been burned by:

1. Overpromised Success: You were told that within months, your medical tourism program would be flooded with international patients. Pitches mentioned sky-high revenue projections, market growth, promised instant visibility with social media, websites, and a few strategic partnerships. It all seemed so simple, and you trusted the "experts." And you paid them from precious startup funds.

But patients didn't materialize as expected, and the expenses started piling up. You poured resources into marketing campaigns that went nowhere, creating a website that looks good but didn't drive masses of American tourists to your business and your partners' operating theaters.

2. The "COVID Changed Everything" Excuse: Perhaps you’ve been told that COVID-19 is the sole reason for the slow growth, and that things will bounce back eventually. But the fact is, while COVID certainly impacted the industry, businesses that adapted to new realities survived—and many thrived. Those that didn’t evolve, or tried to return to pre-pandemic business models, found themselves on shaky ground. Why did some thrive but not you?

3. Doing It All Yourself: If you’ve tried to handle everything yourself—social media, marketing, patient sourcing, negotiating with international hospitals—you’ve likely hit burnout. There may have been some small wins, but juggling all of these responsibilities isn’t ideal. The cracks are starting to show, and you realize something has to change, fast. And even if you do it all yourself, it still costs money for graphics, hosting, licenses, and more. How long can you work without income as a startup?

4. Aiming at the wrong target source markets for patients. Did you target the wrong markets due to your advisors' inexperience and one-size-fits-all, cookie cutter approach? Did you pass by and even ignore ripe, rich source markets that were more practical and easier to attract?

The Breaking Point: After countless hours of work, investment in ineffective solutions, and disappointing results, you're probably wondering what went wrong. The frustration of constantly putting out fires, handling every detail, and seeing little return on your investment has brought you here. Maybe your current strategy is working. Where are the wins? The low hanging fruit? Why isn't your business scaling? Is the competition overtaking you or have they struggled just like you?. This was supposed to be easy money. Where is it?

For this article, I am inviting your war stories in comments.

As a recognized thought leader with nearly 5 decades of success in medical tourism and as a working Director of Business Development at St. George Surgical Center in Utah, I emerged out of retirement to spearhead the center's medical travel program in 2019, and within months, I transformed it into a success story. I started pre-Covid. It was tough. When travel rekindled, we did too. We didn't seek fantasy markets. We draw from our target markets. Like a freight train, I have a proven track record for driving growth and making things happen.

But I have education and training that most medical tourism startup companies lack. I followed my own advice. It wasn't easy to do what I told others to do. Meanwhile, the other consultants who also lacked the training, education and experience just kept ringing their cash registers with novices' money.

If you can describe your story of what went wrong in comments, I will offer what guidance I can rather than just "liking" your response if you'll share what happened.

Just remember the old mantra, "Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice." I can't help you if you cannot describe what went wrong or didn't work. I cannot make suggestions. You don't need to name names. Just tell me what happened and what you believe was the problem. Not only will I respond, but others may also chime in with their similar experiences or contribute solutions.

The COLD HARD FACTS

Fact: Most medical tourism startups that failed did so in fewer than 36 months. If this happened to you, you are not alone. Don't waste precious time and opportunity beating yourself up over it.

Undercapitalization, lack of clinical background, waiting for free facilitator fam trips to visit hospitals and clinics, not knowing what to look for and how to choose providers and target markets are some of the reasons facilitators fail. But maybe the problem was that the hospitals and targeted providers didn't have a prepared "product" to sell. I often meet these providers at events I've attended. They are looking for advice from anyone, anywhere, as long as it's free or for the cost of a wine or a coffee.

How much does a facilitator startup really need to launch the business?

Fact: In the USA, about USD $100,000.

Why so much? Because there are legal costs to get your contracts and business structure established and purchase business liability insurance. And no, you cannot use ChatGPT to build them because an AI can hallucinate. It said that Maria Todd was the president of the medical tourism association. THAT is a hallucination if there ever was one! I wanted to sue for defamation! It said that JCI was an American Accreditation Organization for international hospitals that accredited them to American Standards. There are no American Standards as such unless you include American Standard toilets.

Next, you have to pay for your travel to inspect and qualify your partner providers. If you don't know what to examine, who will draft your business standards and policies and contracts with providers, clients, and others ready for launch. And, in most instances, commission payments exchanged for referrals is illegal. You have to offer a value added thing that is substantive and charge for your own value added services. And get people to pay those fees.

Then there's the marketing, advertising, branding and promotional costs. Choosing a target market to source referrals costs money. If the hospital in another country won't invest their own money and they believe they can get you to go at risk and do it for them, and you don't have money to invest in marketing, advertising, branding, and public relations and other promotion, and it doesn't grow on a tree in the garden, where does it come from? Startup capital, of course. Whose startup capital?

I've had business people from Turkey who said, I'm from Turkey. I know doctors and clinics. I'll start a facilitator business and send clients to Turkey. What if they don't want to go to Turkey? Now swap out Turkey for any other country. What if that's not where they want to go?

There are those who said, "I want to be a facilitator. I'll go get certified." So what. Did you research what the certification will get you in the real world? No matter who certified them, I have had hospitals say, "Oh, you were certified by XYZ? No thanks, we know what they certify. We don't want you to represent us." You have an expensive piece of paper. Worse yet, if you put those certifications on a business card or website, you'll be asked to pay a licensing fee. And when you come up for renewal, will you be strongarmed to renew and threatened with lawsuits? If the average facilitator lasts only 18 months and the certification is for two years, what good is a renewal? One person called me with this problem from Central America and I said do nothing and see what happens. Threatening lawsuits if you don't plan to follow through is not okay in most countries. But if you are out of business and bankrupt, what do you care?

How much does it cost for a hospital or clinic to launch a medical tourism service line?

Fact: About USD $500,000 and the very minimum.

Legal, contracts, staffing and staff equipment and training. Product development, pricing integrity. Insurance. Then there's the market research: Who will buy? From where will they come? What will they buy? Why you and why now? Then there's paid advertising and promotion, graphics, branding, marketing and educating the market. And these are ongoing costs, not one offs. I didn't add attendance and stand rentals at conferences in this budget.

Next the government may ask you to partner on capitalization of a "cluster". In Colombia, they allegedly got advice from some association president that if all the hospitals formed a special trade zone and earned JCI accreditation in addition to already having ICONTEC, that American insurance companies would send patients and pay for the care. Really? Prove it. It didn't happen, but the capital call was made and several paid up. I showed them what the contracts and contracting policy looked like by sharing sample contracts with their attorney. But by then, it was too late. The policy of the capital and the accreditation was already written into legislation. It's been over 12 years. Still no contracts. Hmm.

I've been at this since 1976 helping governments shape medical tourism policy, analyze markets, helping hospitals and clinics and health resorts and spas design strategy and choosing and launching service lines, and then seek funding by international development banks, embassies, and tourism boards in 122 countries. Some drifted of course and failed while others achieved sustainable success. I help the providers in most of my consultations. Most independent facilitators are not able to afford my services because they startup on a shoestring, bootstrap budget. They can afford a website, a cell phone and little else. Some cannot even afford business cards.

I don't sell any certifications. After 5 successful decades in the business, I can assure you with reasonable expert certainty that you don't need any.

Instead, I TEACH. I share knowledge, experiences, and lessons learned through internationally-published books. With seven, internationally-published books on medical tourism startups, launches, and marketing strategies, I am the leading "practical" expert and a trusted name in the industry.

Many of the big healthcare brand CEO's around the world know me, have my cell phone number, and call me directly. They don't attend those conferences and expos because, like me, they've been there -- done that. They are busy -- just like me. I have never EVER emailed a soul on Linkedin to ask ANYONE to jump on a call to pitch them. I don't pitch. I'm sure my clients and peers don't ask people on LinkedIn to jump on calls either. So without pitching how have I been so successful with medical tourism? Because I know the business of healthcare as well as I know my own name. That comes after 48 years in the industry as a nurse, CEO, marketer, contractor and consultant. What else don't I do? I don't set up medical tourism conferences and sell sponsorships and stand rentals. That's not how you do this!

If a CEO wants to know something about medical tourism, they call me and ask what's happening in places they are interested in. I send a bill for the time and expertise and they pay it. You won't meet them at those events either. They are a waste of time and money unless your goal is networking with your competitors. You should probably try to attend events where potential clients exist. But for that to be worthwhile, you will need an elevator pitch that differentiates you.

My experience spans 48 years of working with hospitals, same day surgery centers, (ASCs as they are called in the USA), single and multispecialty private clinics, government agencies, international development banks, and direct work with surgeons and healthcare providers in 122 countries and all throughout the USA. I know exactly what works—and what doesn’t—in the domain of medical tourism.

I take a very different direction compared with other advisors with medical tourism product development and programming. It's an opportunity market, but it doesn't come from unproven concepts. I have no "concept of a plan."

I've successfully deployed on strategies for medical tourism tax increment financing for both capitalization of the de novo medical tourism "product" and also to help cross subsidize public health needs for the local citizenry of the planned medical tourism destination. I've helped design and launch special trade zones for medical tourism. I've also helped dissuade organizers when the decision was emotionally driven but didn't work out financially or logistically. I don't sell theories as solutions.

In my professional roles, I've been a hospital administrator, an OR nurse, a Director of Business Development, a Director of Revenue Management, and the leading contracting executive for big hospital chains. Clients recognize they are speaking with a seasoned peer. As a provider contracting director for a large US insurer, I have negotiated contracts with thousands of providers. Health plans don't try to convince me to accept bad, unbalanced contracts. I know the insider details from hands on experience and authored the leading professional text on insurance and payer contracting, internationally published and peer-reviewed, now in 3rd edition. I am credentialed to guide organizers clinically as well as administratively. And I'm probably the only recognized medical tourism consultant who has also facilitated tens of thousands of patient cases as both an IATA registered travel agent and medical tourism case manager, combined. So I can teach providers how to select the best prepared facilitators that won't damage their brands for the sake of a transaction.

Medical travel product development is not simply a "re-purposing" of existing medical service delivery. There's much more to the development of a unique and distinct "product" for medical travel care delivery.

I am still employed as the part-time Director of Business Development at St. George Surgical Center. I call this out to differentiate myself as a consultant who must act on their own advice in the "now". My information and expertise is current. Even though I am extremely busy, I still accept select speaking opportunities to teach others (but in 43 years of speaking at more than 3000 presentations, I have never "pitched from the podium").

I accept a few select clients each year after careful consideration of their project briefs without the need for large retainers or bills. Clients fly me to their location to conduct an initial assessment and meet face-to-face with project organizers and executives and government agencies and banks involved. They tap into my vast experience to get the insights they need, without committing to a full-time marketer or consultant. I've done this to prepare hospitals for JCI accreditation, and lead service line launch, and conduct department staff training, mostly by remote online consultation. I've been where you are, and I know how to pull you out of the tough spots, just like I've done for my own successful medical tourism businesses and so many others.

If you’ve already tried going it alone, if you've trusted the wrong people, and tossed money in the bin by attempting solutions that didn’t pan out. Ask me for an initial assessment to get you back on track to success. I have the knowledge, the experience, and the tools to turn your medical tourism business around—and I am available to a few to guide you without breaking your budget.

If you aren't sure you want to request consulting, remember to put your issue in comments so I can offer some advice that others will likely benefit from as well.

Stop guessing and start succeeding. Reach out to me today and let my experience drive your medical tourism program to the success it was meant to achieve. All it costs to get some expert advice is to post your question or story of what went wrong in comments below. I promise you I don't have time to data mine who poste a response and start pitching you with cold calls, AI written emails, and promises of stars and moonbeams and pots of gold at the end of the rainbow.

If you want something personal to help you with your your startup or problem, call my office for an appointment. +1.800.727.4160. It is rare I can take a call and set aside everything else without advance planning. We are open from 0700 to 1900 with live answer secretaries during the winter months (referred to as MST - Mountain Standard Time) and 6 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT-6) during the summer months (referred to as MDT - Mountain Daylight Time). I often schedule calls on the weekend when doctors and hospital administrators can set aside their own busy time to chat. But I can't help you if you won't let us know you want assistance. ?? In any event, best of luck!