Many Alzheimer’s patients are being moved to other countries for the climate and the overall ambiance. (Shutterstock)
The United States boasts some of the world’s top medical professionals and some of the best disease research facilities, but despite the technological advancements in this country designed to improve treatment, the nation’s Alzheimer’s patients are looking elsewhere for care.
According to a report from the Associated Press, Alzheimer sufferers from industrialized nations around the world are traveling abroad for treatment, not only in search of lower costs but a better quality of care.
This process of leaving one’s home country for care elsewhere is known as “medical tourism “, and according to the group Patients Beyond Borders, some 8 million people throughout the world seek care abroad annually. The reasons for these pilgrimages can be many; patients may be looking for more cost-effective treatment, stronger spiritual support, or a different climate.
But for many Alzheimer’s patients and their families, medical tourism is about quality of care. In the United States, a melting pot of cultures and belief systems has created a variable atmosphere in nursing home facilities where Alzheimer’s patients often spend their final days.
Families see their loved ones shuffled away into a group of other similarly-afflicted individuals with little one-on-one care given due to staff shortages and wage cuts.
Thailand and the Philippines are seeing an Alzheimer’s patient-surge
In places like Thailand and the Philippines, where the Alzheimer’s patient-surge is booming, families find solace in the fact their loved one is in the care of traditionally family-centric cultures–and at a much less expensive cost compared to what can be found in the United States. AP indicates the Philippines is offering Americans care for $1,500 to $3,500 a month, compared to an $6,900 for a private room in a quality facility in the United States.
Similarly, Facilities in Thailand are gearing up to build luxury-style retirement and elder care facilities with the sole intent to attract Alzheimer’s patients and other seniors from around the world.
British businessman Peter Brown, told AP, “In Europe they tend to follow a lock-up system. They know what should be done but they just don’t have the staff to do it — to take patients to visit gardens, to give them some freedom.
And the carers tend to come from the lower end of the nursing system. They often don’t have the desire to work with Alzheimer’s patients or an affinity with them.”
Brown turned a bankrupt resort into the Care Resort Chiang Mai where residents will live in five-room units, and benefit from 24-hour care. Those at the facility will have access to extensive, landscaped grounds at the base of a mountain, with a thousand trees and a lake.
“Sometimes I am jealous. My wife won’t take my hand but when her Thai carer takes it, she is calm. She seems to be happy,” said Ulrich Kuratli who moved his wife from their homeland of Sweden to a facility in Thailand. “When she sees me she starts to cry. Maybe she remembers how we were and understands, but can no longer find the words.”
Alzheimer’s patients benefit from access to the outside world, making medical tourism popular. (Shutterstock)
Not everyone is sold on the benefits of medical tourism
While there seems to be some alluring aspects of medical tourism, especially for Alzheimer’s patients, not all experts are sold on the idea. According to some, removing an Alzheimer’s patient from their familiar surroundings may only add to their sense of confusion.
“People with dementia should stay in their familiar environment as long as possible. They are better oriented in their own living places and communities,” stated Sabine Jansen, head of Germany’s Alzheimer Society. “Friends, family members, neighbors can visit them. Also because of language and cultural reasons, it is best for most to stay in their home country.”
That being said, supporters of medical tourism argue that an Alzheimer’s patient who is disoriented enough to not know where they are would likely be that way regardless of where the facility they are in is located.
For Alzheimer’s patients, it is often distant memories, not current situations, that occupy their thoughts
Other concerns about medical tourism center on the standards of care facilities are held to. In many nations there are no regulatory bodies, and while care may seem more personable, it can still vary widely.
There is also limited global information from non-biased organizations regarding treatment around the world.
“What data does exist is generally provided by stakeholders with a vested interest rather than by independent research institutions,” said Dr. Neil Lunt, from the University of York, to Medical News Today .
“What is clear is that there exists no credible authoritative data at the global level, which is why we are urging caution to governments and other decision-makers who see medical tourism as a lucrative source of additional revenue.”
Until there is a far-reaching method of monitoring the ethical standards associated with medical tourism, experts are wary of labeling it as “good” or “bad.” For now, families must rely on their own research to make the best-informed decisions they can regarding elder care.
source: http://www.voxxi.com / Home> Health> Mental Health / by Health Gillette / January 10th, 2014
