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While 2018 saw a shrinkage of the number of foreigners who comes to Albania to receive health care, seems that in 2019 the fate is smiling to the businesses in the field. According to the latest INSTAT figures, for the first six months of the year, the number of foreign citizens coming for healthcare reasons was 444, an increase of 270% compared to the same period of the previous year - 120. We remind that throughout 2018 the total number was 276.
For the growth of health tourism figures, market players argue that there was better coordination, which began at the end of last year between domestic health providers (mostly private) and foreign and Albanian agencies to attract tourists.Erjona Shahini, director of Health Tourism Albania, told to the interested media that they had high demands this year and the clients generally come from Italy.
"We have the highest number of demands by the Italians, who contact us directly through social networks or through partner agencies. This is due to the proximity between the two countries. Also, this year, we have given a lot of attention to communication and marketing to countries like England, because the data show that there is a growing demand in this area, which was previously unexplored. Funding shortages, medical staff cuts, long waiting lists, and uncertainties about Brex make English patients explore the 'cost-benefit' options outside their home country. Shahini said.
Plastic interventions are the main asset Albania has had in recent years to attract foreigners.
Market actors claim that the Italians generally come to Albania to fix their nose, as prices are 50% cheaper than in Italy, while British are also preferring in vitro services.
Why Albania?
Along with its low profile in international health care, Albania has started to be attractive to tourists. International flights connect Tirana Airport with most of the destinations in the world. Foreign media, which characterize Albania as a country with no dangers and exceptional natural beauty, have been added in the last few years. Tirana has become a modern city, where English is widely spoken, tourism infrastructure is good and foreign visitors will have a safe and secure stay.
The private clinics are working in this direction, as their location is mainly in the capital, to attract potential foreign clients. Plastic surgery is seeing a higher development than other interventions because according to market players, there is no high-level of emergence of such an intervention as are done mainly for pleasure.
Albania continues to be preferred in dental tourism as a result of favorable prices and affiliated clinics with foreign partner agencies, hair planting services, highly sought after by private hospitals in the country, IN Vitro, which is mainly preferred by Italians and British, as well as plastic surgery, were rhinoplasty is leading, then the lips and chest remodeling.