Our vacation plans are usually focused around some version of maximizing fun: seeing as many sights as possible, eating all the local cuisine, shopping until our feet ache, and partying until exhaustion. Seldom do we include a doctor’s or health visit into the vacation plan, even though it can be a good idea to get certain health issues checked on the cheap in foreign countries. It’s not so strange if you think about the fact that if a vacation is about being comfortable, why should it not include a professional massage? While it is not recommended to get healthcare or large procedures done in foreign countries, it is generally safe to enjoy and incorporate some of the following into your vacation itinerary:
Taking care of your feet
Travelling involves walking for hours, often mistreating your feet in the process by wearing ill-fitting shoes, putting too much strain on them, and not grooming them every day. Your feet require care, too, whether in the form of good walking shoes or a relaxing foot massage every now and then. A podiatrist is a medical professional who specializes in the field of foot care and deals with problems of the foot, such as bunions and cracked heels. Podiatry is often cheaper in foreign countries. Take advantage of this by getting a consultation at a podiatry clinic in countries such as Singapore, which are highly developed and offer some of the best medical treatment in the world for an affordable price. Some medical equipment can also be purchased in Singapore on the cheap, such as useful bunion correctors. If you decide not to go through the full treatment there, you can use the insight either as a second opinion or as a starting point for future treatment.
Get those muscles relaxed
Another treatment a lot of tourists choose to get on vacation is a visit with a physiotherapist. If you have been having sore muscles and back pain, you can get a consultation with a professional physiotherapist and deal with these issues. You can even undertake a few therapy sessions and see the improvement yourself. As with any other medical procedure, be aware of whether your therapist has a license and certificates, and do thorough research by reading reviews. A physiotherapy session on vacation can be just like a Thai massage or a spa treatment—except more medically accurate.
Getting your teeth checked
Dentistry is one of the most common causes of medical tourism worldwide as dental work can be very expensive in some countries. When in a foreign country that offers cheap dental care, make sure to get your teeth checked by a dentist at the very least. This can save you expenditure on getting X-rays and other tests. If you are afraid of getting a procedure on a distant land, at least knowing what is or isn’t wrong with your teeth can save you some initial costs.
Medical tourism doesn’t have to be about getting drastic surgeries and risky procedures. It is possible to integrate certain aspects of healthcare into your travel plans without putting yourself at risk by going to unregulated practitioners.