Prioritization of Factors Related to Attracting Medical Tourists in Yazd City, Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Milad Shafii 1
Roholah Asqari 1
Mohammad Kazem Rahimi 2
Mohammad Ranjbar 3
Farzan Madadizadeh 4
Fatemeh Jafarian 5
1 Associate Professor, Health Services Management, Department of Health Services Management, School of Public Health, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Health Services Management, Department of Health Services Management, School of Public Health, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
3 Associate Professor, Health Services Management, Department of Health Services Management, School of Public Health AND Health Management and Policy Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
4 Assistant Professor, Biostatistics, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health AND Health Data Modeling Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
5 MSc Student, Health Services Management, Department of Health Services Management, School of Public Health, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
10.22122/him.v18i1.4422
Abstract
Introduction: Today, the medical tourism market has been raised as one of the revenue industries in the world. In the tourism industry, factors have a direct and important impact on boom and expansion that causes some countries to become a medical tourism pole. This study aimed at prioritizing factors related to the absorption of medical tourists in Yazd City, Iran.
Methods: In the first step, using the keywords such as "medical tourism, effective factors and absorption factors", Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, Scientific Information Database (SID), Magiran, Medlib, Civilica, and Irandoc were reviewed, and related factors with the absorption of tourists were extracted; and in the second stage, using the hierarchical analysis model, by the research community consisting medical tourists and experts in this area, these factors were prioritized.
Results: Factors were identified in the two themes, seven subthemes, and 27 items; among them, the subtheme of the quality of health services, and item of the quality of the treatment staff had the most importance and priority from the viewpoint of medical tourists and experts in this area.
Conclusion: One of the ways to increase tourists attracting and influencing tourists to choose Iran as a destination country, is to increase the quality of services, especially medical services, along with reducing costs, and making them competitive.

Keywords

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Health Information Management
Volume 18, Issue 6 - Serial Number 82
March and April 2022
Pages 248-257