First Total Hip Replacement Opens Doors to Untapped Medical Tourism

Turks & Caicos News - February 2013

First Total Hip Replacement Opens Doors to Untapped Medical Tourism

The first total hip replacement procedure performed in the Turks and Caicos Islands was a success that not only sets up the potential for further medical procedure advances, but also establishes the Turks and Caicos Islands as a premier location for medical tourism.

A team of medical experts from Global MedChoices (GMC) performed the first total hip replacement in the TCI this past week at the Chesire Hall Medical Facility on Providenciales. GMC, a global healthcare technology and health services brokerage firm, partnered with the Chesire Hall Medical staff in order to perform the procedure.

Dr. James MacKenzie from Calgary Canada performed the surgery on one of the five patients brought to the island by GMC. Additionally, combined team will be performing seven knee replacement surgeries on local TCI patients at the nation’s capital. Another first for the region was the use of the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing technology which avoids the removal of the ball like femoral head portion of the hip by shaving the bone and capping it with a metal implant.

“We are very happy with the quality of the facility and the surgeons have marveled at the state of the art facility. Global MedChoices’ participating programs are strategically positioned to broker services to all major revenue generating segments of the medical tourism market,” said Richard Boddington, COO with Global MedChoices LLC.

InterHealth Canada contracted the surgeon through Global MedChoices, a US based Medical tourism agency. In 2012 the orthopedic surgery was a test for bigger plans to bring patients from other countries, including the United States and Canada, to the country to have their procedures carried out at the state of the art hospital. This is particularly important for the facility in the nation’s capital as utilization of the facilities by a firm from the U.S. can bring in an untouched revenue stream that would be useful to the TCI.

Patients undergoing the orthopedic surgeries are hospitalized for several days and are then released but stay within the country for several more days before returning to their homes.

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Written by Turks & Caicos Free Press Newspaper, February 18, 2013.