Consumption Abroad: The Mode II of GATS (A Prefatorial Study of Medical Tourism in Gujarat State of India)

STRATEGIC WEALTH THROUGH STRATEGIC HR AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP, pp. 531 - 543, Gopalakrishnan C., Muncherji Nina and Dhar Upinder, eds., Excel Books, New Delhi, Jan. 2009

Posted: 28 Feb 2011

See all articles by Pawan K. Chugan

Pawan K. Chugan

Nirma University - Institute of Management; AIIM - Ahmedabad; SPM - PDPU

Upinder Dhar

Shri Vaishnav Vidyapeeth Vishwavidyalaya

Shwetang Bhatt

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: Jan. 2009

Abstract

Medical tourism is one of the major sectors amongst the trade in services that has been growing significantly the world over particularly with the establishment of General Agreement of Trade in Services (GATS) under WTO. This sector falls under Mode II - known as “Consumption Abroad” of GATS. India is the cynosure of Medical Tourists (MTs) amongst its competing countries, such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Hong Kong, Philippines, Cuba, Hungary, Israel, Jordan, Lithuania, etc. Ahmedabad in the State of Gujarat is one of the major centres in India, in addition to Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkatta, etc., where MTs have been coming for treatment in growing numbers. An attempt has been made in this paper to analyze the opinions and ratings for the quality and cost of various medical facilities availed by these MTs who had visited various hospitals in Ahmedabad for their treatment from various parts of the world e.g., US, UK, Germany, Canada, Australia, Korea, UAE, Africa, Sri Lanka, etc. In addition, the paper defines and describes the various issues related to medical tourism, such as GATS and Mode II-Consumption Abroad; Medical tourism with its historical perspective, its present scenario and reasons for medical travel; Opportunities and challenges for this sector of Indian industry and suggests the strategy i.e. entrepreneurial responsiveness and policy implications so that the Gujarat State as also the nation as a whole could get a larger pie of this growing global trade in services.

Keywords: Medical Tourism, General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), Mode-II -Consumption Abroad, Entrepreneurial responsiveness and policy implications.

JEL Classification: F2, I1, L83, M13

Suggested Citation

Chugan, Pawan Kumar and Dhar, Upinder and Bhatt, Shwetang, Consumption Abroad: The Mode II of GATS (A Prefatorial Study of Medical Tourism in Gujarat State of India) (Jan. 2009). STRATEGIC WEALTH THROUGH STRATEGIC HR AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP, pp. 531 - 543, Gopalakrishnan C., Muncherji Nina and Dhar Upinder, eds., Excel Books, New Delhi, Jan. 2009, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1769610

Pawan Kumar Chugan (Contact Author)

Nirma University - Institute of Management ( email )

Sarkhej Gandhinagar Highway
Ahmedabad, GUJARAT 382481
India

HOME PAGE: http://pawanchugan.wordpress.com

AIIM - Ahmedabad ( email )

Adani Shantigram, Vaishno Devi Circle
S.G. Highway
Ahmedabad, Gujarat 382421
India

HOME PAGE: http://pawanchugan.wordpress.com/

SPM - PDPU ( email )

Raisan
Gandhinagar, Gujarat 382007
India

HOME PAGE: http://pawanchugan.wordpress.com/

Upinder Dhar

Shri Vaishnav Vidyapeeth Vishwavidyalaya ( email )

Sanwer Road
Indore-Ujjain Road
Indore, M.P.
India
+91-98290-89526 (Phone)

Shwetang Bhatt

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Abstract Views
1,328
PlumX Metrics