In 2005, the Turkish Healthcare Travel Council (THTC) was established to strengthen health tourism activities and to unite the national efforts to bring more patients to Turkey from around the world.

It has 375 members, consisting of general hospitals, private clinics, thermal and medical spa centres, hotels, travel agencies, spa and wellness centres, medical travel agents and assistance companies, and 161 network offices in 90 different countries.

According to THTC, in 2017 Turkey hosted 756,000 international patients from 144 countries.

They contributed a direct income of US$7.2 billion to the Turkish economy.

Bucking a global trend for increased focus on outpatient and preventative care, Turkey is doubling down on hospital investment.

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Throughout many of the healthcare systems in North America and Europe, there is an increasing emphasis on outpatient and preventative care. In terms of health economics, governments see a great benefit in this approach, as by increasing outpatient services, patients are prevented from contracting diseases/conditions that require expensive hospital visits. 

Seizing the cost competitiveness of the Turkish market and the government’s nurturing of local manufacturing, Turkish companies are looking to harness their geographic positioning and export to developed and developing markets alike.

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“Although Turkey constitutes our manufacturing base, our objective is to supply our products to both developing and mature markets, such as the US and Europe,” explained Philipp Haas, chairman and CEO of Deva, the first sustainable mover to the US market to emerge from the Turkish industry.