FAQ

Medical Tourism is when people travel to another country to get health, medical and surgical care while at the same time recovering in privacy.

Patients are traveling for different reasons. Some of the reasons are; high quality healthcare, affordability, access to advanced technology, no waiting lists, and excellent aftercare.

A Medical Tourism Facilitator is a company that helps coordinate the patient’s health travel to another country for health and medical care. At Gate To Wellness, we do the research, use our contacts and knowledge to provide you with top options. We can also, take care of all the details of appointments, bookings and travel needs.

You do not have to work with a medical travel facilitator. You can search for overseas facilities, find out which is better, contact them, send your reports, schedule your appointments, fill all needed forms and book all your arrangements. However, working with Gate To Wellness relives you of all the guesswork.

We did our homework and personally inspected the facilities of our network, met the doctors, and established strong relationships with them.  We will save you time, effort and guess work. These are only a few examples of the value of working with us, versus attempting to manage the process on your own.

• We Listen to you, your concerns and understand your needs

• Collect your medical records

• provide you with info  about two different medical or health providers and estimated cost

• You choose the facility and treating doctor

• Schedule your treatment or procedure

• Provide you with an itinerary, your booking, contact info and useful information

• Coordinate any needed rehabilitation with you and the treating doctor

• Follow up with you during your travel

• Follow up with you when you are back home

If you know a specific doctor or facility and you do not have the time to take care of all the emails, sending reports,….. We can make the appointment and take care of all the details, we are more than happy to facilitate

A travel agent might be able to book you an appointment, but will not be able to do the research, will be unqualified to handle the complexities and privacy of medical tourism. It needs to be someone who understands the patients’ needs and the relationship between the patient and the practitioner. Gate To Wellness is a Member of the Medical Tourism Association and operated by a Certified Medical Travel Specialist.

To begin with, one of our key services is to provide you with information and options.  We will provide you with information about the doctor, why we think he is qualified to treat you. In addition, you will have information about the facility, why it is suitable for your medical needs. We will arrange phone call (if possible) or even video conferences with the doctor so you can ask questions until you get confident enough to carry on with your medical travel decision

Calls can be done via phone, and/or Skype from our office, if needed or possible (according to the doctor’s availability). We will try our best to arrange a call if needed.

We will try our best to get approval from our past clients in order for you to speak to them. Once you decide to move forward with Gate To Wellness, we will gladly refer you to past clients that have had the same procedure as you are planning to undergo. In return, we will appreciate to get references from you once you return from your medical travel – you can obviously rest assured that we totally respect the privacy of all our clients and will only assign referrals to those that give us the permission to do so.

Gate To Wellness purpose is to provide you with the necessary information for you to make an informed and educated choice about the medical travel options we propose. We do not have the authority to encourage, advice, advocate or underwrite any of the doctors or healthcare facilities in our network. The final choice comes back to you; we will facilitate and provide answers to questions that you may have.

Of course, you can make your own travel arrangements. However, if you need help we are more than happy to help.

Your doctor will give you a length of stay estimation in your pre-travel treatment plan. Keep in mind that this estimation might change after you undergo the procedure depending on what your doctor will judge best for you; not everyone heals at the same speed.

You can make changes, but changes may cost you money, please read the payment and cancelation policy of your facility, before you make any changes.  If you need to make any changes to your hotel, air tickets, or any other booked services, please contact your service provider and check the cancelation fees.

Prior to you departure, you will be given your Gate To Wellness contact number, as well as a contact of a person in your destination country (if needed).

We know that the presence of a companion is reassuring on such a trip, so we encourage you to bring a travel partner. Some hospitals will not allow relatives to sleep in the room with the patient, others will have very strict visiting hours, others will charge extra for any person staying in the hospital room with the patient. Let us know your needs and we will get you the answers

You have the rights to change your mind and we respect that. However, keep in mind that the payment and cancellation policy of Gate To Wellness, the facility and other services booked will apply. In that regard, we recommend you to subscribe to a trip cancellation insurance to protect your investment in case of a cancellation. These insurances might reimburse you for non-refundable prepaid expenses for things such as airfare, hotel accommodations, and the medical procedure itself.

We have very good relationship with our network and might be able to fit you in as soon as possible; this usually depended on the hospital, country, and time of the year you are planning to travel. We recommend starting as early as possible. In an emergency, we will do everything we can to get you an appointment.

Most hospital will have a staff who can speak English or even Arabic. If they do not, we can book you an interpreter who can be with you when you need him or her. Usually this charged per hour or on daily basis. Talk to us about your needs and we will give you an estimated cost

There are no guarantees when undergoing surgery or medical treatment, but that goes for your local hospital down the street from you as well. With travel, the risks might be higher especially if you are not feeling well. Always check with your local doctor and get the green light from him that you can fly. Gate To Wellness focus is to minimize the risks by working with some of the best-known facilities in the world.

We are not medical professionals and therefore will not discuss or advise in any issues relating to medical treatment and will not recommend any preferred or specific doctors for your desired medical treatment. Always seek the advice of your medical doctor or other qualified health care provider on any questions regarding personal health or medical conditions.

Gate To Wellness will provide a broad range of services, including:

• Research in your behalf doctors and hospitals to fit your specific needs

• Report to you appropriate hospitals and physicians or surgeons for special treatments

• Schedule the steps of the whole travel, specially consultations and procedures

• Secure and discrete document transfers

• Transparent cost-estimate  for the trip

• Arranging services in addition to the treatment like booking flights, accommodation, interpreter and organizing other services as needed

Gate To Wellness is committed to providing access to the high quality medical treatment to all our clients. Therefore, we work with hospitals and clinics which offer high standards of care and have an international reputation of excellence.

Gate To Wellness visit and evaluate facilities on the following criteria:

• Certified clinics and hospitals with internationally renowned doctors

• State-of-the art methods of medical treatment

• Technology and aftercare services

• Modern and exclusive facilities and equipment

• Training, experience and international competence of the staff

• Location and accessibility of the hospital or clinic

• International patient services

It is completely your decision which hospital, clinic, or doctor you select to undertake the medical treatment. Gate To Wellness will provide you with all the necessary information to make that decision.

Depending upon your medical condition and the extent of treatment you require, you may consider taking the vacation before your operation rather than after. This is a decision that only you and your treating doctor can make because it depends on the assessment of your medical needs and your wish to take a vacation. Your personal doctor may be willing to assist you in making this decision.

• We are biased patient advocates hired by you to represent your best interest. We work for you not for a specific hospital or doctor
• Member of the Medical Tourism Association in the USA

• Managed by a Certified Medical Travel Specialist

• We did our homework, our General Manager traveled around the world to see the facilities and meet the staff

• It will be our pleasure to meet you, talk to you by phone or Skype to understand your needs, answer your questions.

• Our staff have Arabic speakers who understand your language, culture and concerns.

Gate to Wellness is a member of the Medical tourism Association, which is an international non-profit trade association for the medical tourism and global healthcare industry made up of the top international hospitals, healthcare providers, medical travel facilitators, insurance companies. All with the common goal of promoting the highest level of quality of healthcare to patients in a global environment. The Manager of Gate To Wellness, Reem Al Daghma, is a Member of the Medical Tourism Association and a Certified Medical Travel Specialist.

A legitimate concern that most people have when considering medical care abroad is legal recourse in the event that something goes wrong. To date no formal legal framework established to protect international patents while receiving medical care abroad. If this is an overriding concern to you, then you should perhaps consider remaining at home for your medical procedure. In the unlikely event that some medical malpractice error does occur, it would be very hard to get any financial recourse in a foreign country.

One of the things that anyone who is contemplating surgery abroad should do is check with their insurance company on what care if any is covered under this circumstance.  Some medical tourists may wish to buy additional insurance. Those without insurance should make sure they have the resources to extend their trip in the event of complications until they are fit to travel. 

A recent option that provides additional security and financial insurance for patients is “complications insurance”. This optional insurance policy covers the cost of medical care and travel in the event of a complication resulting from the medical procedure or surgery.

We have a network of medical facilities, clinics, and doctors in Switzerland, France, Germany, Turkey, USA, Great Britain and Malaysia.

Wellness centres in; Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Germany, Turkey, Czech Republic, Malaysia, Thailand and India.