Need Assessment for Specialised Hospitals at the Regional Level: A Potential Way Out of Medical Tourism

Background Every year, a significant number of people go abroad to access healthcare, specifically to access medical care for life-threatening clinical conditions and diverse chronic conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, renal diseases, and cancer for them and their families, due to a lack of access to specialised medical care within their reach and a lack of compliance with the existing healthcare facilities. Methodology This cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the morbidity profile of respondents and their families in relation to their treatment-seeking behaviour abroad and the reasons for it using a pre-tested questionnaire. Along with the descriptive analysis, further analysis was performed by utilising principal component analysis to determine the need for specialised treatment centres at the regional level of the country, as perceived by the respondents, as a means for reducing the ongoing trend of medical tourism. Results In the observed group (n = 523), 26.19% went abroad to seek medical care, while more than half of the respondents (54.49%) expressed their intention to go out of the country for their treatment purposes. Collectively, an overwhelming 90.82% of the respondents desired specialised hospitals at the regional level, emphasising the need for healthcare facilities dedicated to cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, renal diseases, diabetes, and cancer at the regional level. Conclusions Establishment of specialised hospitals at the regional level in the country, considering the prevailing health conditions, may reduce the trend of medical tourism by fellow countrymen, mitigating the need for accessible, quality medical care and opening the scope for health tourism by people in neighbouring countries.