Keith Pollard, a true pioneer in the international medical travel and medical tourism market, is the Managing Director of Intuition Communication, which publishes the International Medical Travel Journal (IMTJ). IMTJ is recognized as one of the most all-inclusive hubs of information in the global health & wellness, dental, and medical travel sectors.
Along with collecting, interpreting, and redistributing international medical travel information, Mr. Pollard is an advocate for more reliable, accurate information and data within the medical tourism industry. He is an avid critic of ill supported claims about international health, wellness, and dental travel. He believes there should be full transparency industry-wide.
In this interview, Keith discusses medical and dental travel both into and out of the UK, and across Europe. He also reviews the UK’s private healthcare system and its challenges, including a discussion about the Future of Private Healthcare Summit, that is organized by Intuition Communication.
Keith offers his interesting and somewhat controversial observations about how providers should offer their services abroad. “A healthcare provider in an attractive leisure or business destination shouldn’t assume that it can attract medical travelers because the destination is well-known.” Mr. Pollard says. “And the key competitive element is not the difference in price, as is often emphasized – the issue is value, not the lowest cost. The motivators for international medical travel are far more complex”
The recent EU cross-border healthcare directive has added momentum to the discussions among EU countries regarding access to cross border healthcare by EU citizens.
Keith discusses the important role that the Internet and social media play in raising awareness and interest in specific providers in the global healthcare market. Pollard reviews the dental, cosmetic surgery and in-vitro fertilization markets, and factors that influence them.