Competition in Health Tourism: Winning on Price or on Value?

The New Paradigm of Health Tourism – Part 5

Last week, we discussed brand building in health tourism and argued that a true brand is built through trust, quality and sustainability, rather than advertising alone.

Once we have established a strong brand, how do we stand out in international competition? By offering lower prices, or by producing greater value? This may be the most critical question facing health tourism today.

For many years, Türkiye enjoyed an important price advantage in health tourism. Our strong healthcare infrastructure, skilled workforce and exchange-rate conditions enabled international patients to access quality services at affordable costs. In recent years, however, economic conditions have begun to change. The Turkish lira’s performance against foreign currencies, rising operating and personnel costs, and global inflation mean Türkiye is no longer seen as quite the “inexpensive country” it once was. In my view, this is an important opportunity for Türkiye to enter a new era in health tourism. We must now ask ourselves:

Will we compete on price or on value?

When health tourism competition is driven solely by price, the race has no end. There will always be another country, institution or provider able to offer a lower price. Price competition may bring patients in the short term, but places serious pressure on quality over the long term. Costs are cut. The workforce is affected. Investment in technology may be postponed. Patient experience may weaken. Most importantly, healthcare gradually begins to lose the value it deserves.

Healthcare is not an ordinary commercial product. You can replace a car or upgrade a phone. Mistakes in healthcare, however, often cannot be undone.

Sometimes, choosing not to perform a procedure is a far better decision than performing it incorrectly. A healthcare service must be provided for the right indication, by the right physician, at the right centre and using the right method. Success in healthcare is measured by correct outcomes, rather than the number of procedures performed.

We can see this more clearly in certain fields today.

Uncontrolled price competition affects the entire sector as well as individual institutions. Institutions gradually lose value, services become standardised, perceptions of quality weaken and inappropriate practices increase. International trust inevitably suffers.

As trust declines, international patients begin to turn to alternative countries.

Competition intended to win through price can therefore lead to market losses over the long term. This is one of the greatest risks in health tourism. Brand value is built over years, yet the wrong approach to competition can destroy it very quickly.

International patients today ask more than the price. They also ask: “How experienced is the doctor?” “How are complications managed?” “Will you stay in contact with me after treatment?” “Can I trust this country?” All of these represent value.

A patient purchases more than an operation. They purchase trust, experience, quality and an outcome. Perhaps we now need to move towards new services that generate greater added value, rather than trying to offer the same service more cheaply.

Global health tourism today extends well beyond hair transplantation, cosmetic surgery and dental treatment. Preventive healthcare, personalised medicine, rehabilitation, wellness, longevity, sports medicine, digital health, genetic counselling and elderly care programmes form a much larger health economy before us.

Türkiye’s knowledge, skilled workforce and geographical advantages give us the capacity to become a global hub in these areas as well.

“We must now change both our approach to competition and our perspective on health tourism.”

We should aim to become the country that creates the greatest value, rather than the one offering the cheapest service. Price competition may make you today’s winner. Competition on value can make you tomorrow’s leader.

Türkiye’s true goal in health tourism is to become one of the world’s most trusted, highest-quality healthcare ecosystems, producing the greatest added value. The future of health tourism will be determined by the value created, rather than price lists.

This is the approach on which the future of health tourism will be built. Perhaps the time has come to measure success through the value we create, rather than patient numbers alone.

In our next article, we will consider what the recently published Regulation on Wellness Services means for Türkiye’s health tourism and the new opportunities it may offer our country.