Aussie Camille Thomas says increasing her breast size from an A Cup to DD for her 21st birthday two years ago at Phuket International Hospital was the best decision she has ever made. ''It was so clean over there, I felt really safe,'' she told thecourier.com.au.


PHUKET: A new deal that supports medical tourism to Phuket and Thailand is coming under attack by Aussie doctors fearful of losing income.

Health fund NIB is now offering offshore plastic surgery packages that give patients a 12-month guarantee on overseas surgery, provided they use approved hospitals.

Lack of a follow-up service has been the only negative preventing many more Australians going to Thailand or Phuket for surgery by equally competent practitioners at much lower fees.

Now the Australian Medical Association has predictably warned that the new option is turning health care into a commodity, reports news.com.au.

With many facilities in Australia already places where patients can catch hospital infections, the AMA is resorting to desperate measures to protect the often sizeable incomes of its members.

Would-be travellers looking for similar treatment at better prices are now being threatened, it seems, with doctors waving lettuce and salads.

According to the Australian media, AMA president Dr Steve Hambleton has warned that even if the medical care is vetted and guaranteed, increasing numbers of people who travel overseas are returning home with multi- drug resistant bacteria in their bowel that could pose a threat if the patient has complications following surgery.

''When you travel overseas and eat lettuce or a salad you could return home with a multi-drug resistant bug in your bowel,'' he is quoted as saying.

Travellers beware: look out for dangerous lettuce and salads. The doctors of Australia say so.

''That could start to hurt you if you have complications from surgery and end up in intensive care and we might not be able to treat the infection,'' Dr Hambledon adds, not saying a word about high fees.

Now high fees, they can really sting.

NIB is organising cosmetic and dental surgery packages combined with luxury accommodation in Thailand under a new business that is not restricted to its health fund members and does not involve health insurance.

That sounds ideal for people looking for corrective surgery who understand that standards at approved hospitals in Thailand and on Phuket are extremely good.

Having resolved the negative of lack of aftercare service, it's easy to see why the surgeons in Australia are now so upset. The bottom line is, they can't compete.

Expect a boom in medical tourism to Thailand and Phuket as more companies follow NIB's lead.

And for patients who prefer to stay in Australia, the prognosis is also likely to be extremely positive: prepare for vast reductions in fees.

Once the idea takes off in Australia, the rest of the world is likely to follow. A rush of inquiries has followed this week's announcement of the new NIB service.

Half the queries have been about cheap overseas dental care and 80 percent of all people were interested in overseas cosmetic or overseas dental care, a spokesman told news.com.au.

Breast procedures are the most common cosmetic surgery inquiry with ''mummy makeovers'' - combined tummy tucks and boob jobs - also being very popular.

Phuket has become a destination of choice for these kinds of operations and medical tourism is booming, with few complaints.

Research by Dr Meredith Jones at the University of Technology Sydney has found around 15,000 Australians a year travel overseas for cosmetic surgery.

Aussies are already spending $300 million a year on the service, reports news.com.au.

NIB has attempted to grow that market by trying to address consumer concerns about dodgy doctors and unsafe hospitals and is offering a 12-month guarantee on the surgery assuring patients they will deal with any complications that arise.

However, patients must ensure they don't contribute to any complications by swimming or ignoring doctors advice if they want to take advantage of the guarantee.

At this stage, NIB will not name the overseas hospitals or doctors it is using because other medical tourism outlets could take advantage of the information.

The fund says its team of international plastic surgeons are registered specialists in their country of residence and have a minimum of 12 years medical and surgical education and five years specialist postgraduate training as plastic surgeons.

Some of the doctors have been trained in Australia or the United States, the fund said.

They are all certified by the Thai Board of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and are licenced under the Medical Council of Thailand.

The hospitals have been visited by NIB and checked by its medical advisory committee and certified by the Joint Commission International.