Testimonials - Orthopedic

I had a fractured hip 5 years ago from a motorcycle accident and had a steel pin put in and a plate in my leg that helped the hip. It was a 50/50 chance that this would get blood flow back to the hip and everything would be alright, but it didn’t happen so the hip joint actually died and I was in sever pain and I couldn’t do much this past year.

I do have emergency medical insurance, but I don’t have regular health. You can’t afford any of this. We checked on the Hip through a couple of different hospitals and you are looking at anywhere from $50,000-$90,000 to do the Hip Replacement. This was in Colorado and with two of the largest hospitals in Colorado.$50k-$90k if you had to pay for it was not even possible. That’s not feasible.

My doctor told me what to expect. As far as what you will see based on from the airport to the hospital. Because he said "in countries like that, He hasn’t been to India, but he has been to many other countries and he said what you see initially will scare you and you will want to get back on the plane and just leave because you are going to think you made a big mistake. And the doctor said "Don’t pay attention to that because that is not the part you will have to deal with. Initially it was very scary. We are not International travelers so going to a foreign country and having somebody do surgery on you that you don’t even know, this was a scary deal. I was not comfortable.

The accommodations at the Guest House were fantastic. You couldn’t find anybody better than those people are. Extremely nice and they tried to accommodate you whatever you needed. She even went as far as when we arrived she had bricks put under the bed so it was taller. So I didn’t have to go down so far to get into bed. She put the orthopedic seat on the toilet which actually raised it up. They were fantastic.

Dr Hegde was fantastic. He is arrogant, which a man in his position does when he is as good as what he does. I happen to like him very much. He is a fantastic doctor.

I would recommend Med Journeys to everyone. Absolutely, Absolutely. These guys did everything. And everything they said they handled. I was extremely impressed with Prabha and Neena in India. They were both fantastic and they went out of their way to make sure everything was right

Prior to my surgery my previous medical condition was a very very worn out left hip where it was bone to bone and there was no cartilage or ligaments that were actually protecting between where the lower bone was hitting the topper bone on your hip when I was walking so it was creating a friction and a pain that was unbearable to walk hardly and I was bent over when I was walking.

I wasn’t able to walk very long distances without a quite a bit of pain and was also popping out of the joint. My left leg was coming out of joint while riding a bicycle or doing a small task like getting out of a car, all of a sudden my leg would have a sharp pain right in the hip area.

What I found out eventually by getting X-rays here in United States was that I needed a hip replacement which was going to cost me $41,000 here. I did not have any insurance. so I looked at Canada where I had stayed for several years.

One of the doctors in Canada who was one of the best in Vancouver, BC, a Michael Piper he came down to apologize to me that morning as I was getting ready to go into pre-surgery check in. He came down after a surgery after I was sitting on a bench waiting to talk to him wondering why they didn’t want to perform on me. He came down to apologize that I was not covered by any insurance and to me my best bet was to go to India. The Doctor himself from Canada told me .Go to India, the doctors are just as well trained, if not just as good or better, they learn mostly in English because India was an English speaking country for so many years. So it wouldn’t be such a culture shock to do to go over there to do it, just travel a long trip and stay there a little longer to get your stitches out. But he said I should go and I would be as good as if I had it done in Canada or the US.

That’s why I called and looked up Med Journeys on the internet. I looked up Medical tourism and then came up with them. Medical tourism is an umbrella of website to show companies like Med Journeys and others that performs the same function. I just went to Med Journeys, clicked on the web page and called up the 800 number and started talking to the people in NY. From Day 1 they were interested and wanted to find out if I had a passport and if I was willing and ready to travel and when I wanted to get it done. And I said I wanted to get it done as soon as possible

I did call another company and all I got was a recording. I didn’t talk to any live people like Sonny Krishana. I talked to friendly live people at Med Journeys and the other couple of numbers I called all I got was a recording, and leave a message and a phone number and I didn’t hear back from them because by the time I got a hold of Med Journeys, a few minutes after I called these other numbers I had live people to talk to and that made a big difference rather than talking to a machine.

Med Journeys was the first one that came right out and gave me a price and told me what was included from it and I did call one other, and they said it was going to be around the same, but since I tried to contact them two or three times, I went with someone I was able to talk to immediately because of the situation I was in with the pain I had. Now if I knew that it was something that was coming up and I didn’t need to get it done for a year, I might have called four or five more places and got more prices. But I was happy to talk to Med Journeys. I knew that was a good price. I know all the organization and what it takes to put it together. They have to make a little bit. Look at it, it was $41,000 in the US and I got it done for $11,990 and that includes the air fare. And if you are staying at a hotel with meals. Surgery was at a very fair price and I am happy they put me in a hospital which was brand new, only eight months old. I wasn’t going to some clinic in the middle of nowhere.

Med Journeys could get it done on time. There was not much of a wait, other than get the paperwork, get the doctor arranged, and find the hospital they wanted to use. Med Journeys uses 4 or 5 hospitals in New Delhi, so I am sure they had to check which doctor was available for Hip replacement surgery on what day and what week would be good. So it took a few days with them for the rest to come together on what day would be fine to do it and that was basically it. And the money thing, They wanted around $12,000 and that included Airfare, hotel, meals, and everything. I only took an extra $200 with me and I even didn’t spend that

Now it’s just up to the good Lord to help this hip heal. It’s kind of sore. But everyone I talk to says , be patient don’t rush your therapy back and since I’m home I haven’t hired a therapist but the medical staff at Artemis Hospital gave me a written report with pictures on it. It shows you what to do, what exercises to do, exercises not to do, not to cross your legs, which way to get out of bed. All the little things that may hinder your recovery. So I’m trying to go by all their recommendations and suggestions and pictures on the brochures they gave me, on the exercises to do afterwards, to do my own personal therapy. It’s a little bit of a slow process, but a new hip is like getting your leg sawed off and a new piece put in there. So I can understand why it’s still a little sore, even after 60 days. All my friends seem to think I look 100% better as far as walking straighter and standing straighter. Now it’s just a matter of being able to walk long distances and not wake up stiff.

People were really friendly in India. That’s what I enjoyed and everyone smiled at you they looked at you if you were a little bit different, you know different colored skin, but so what they were all very nice people and I didn’t have any problems at all. The drivers from the Guest house I stayed at were nice. The people that met me from Med Journeys, and at the hospital, at the airport were nice and took me right to the hospital. The minute I got there the business started and there was no funny business, messing around. It was let’s just get it done.

It was a very nice hospital. You drive in a long huge drive way and there is a guarded gate, you get up to the front of the entry and there is another guard in the front. The hospital was six stories high, hundreds and hundreds of rooms. It was nice and clean and as it was a brand new hospital, I was lucky.

Dr. Hegde is a very good guy. Him and the other doctor, they were both very nice and gave me their business cards with their website addresses. So I’ve emailed them once or twice and I am about ready to email them again to tell them about my progress and what’s going on two months post surgery. There was no problems with communications with the Doctors, the Nurses, the Hospital’s administrator would come in every morning and ask how me how I was doing. It was almost like there were too many visits from some of the people of the hospital, but they wanted to make sure I was comfortable and happy and that why they did it. They almost went over the line a little in coming in to find out how you were. At the Guest House, I spoke with patients who have gone through similar or other surgeries, and they said the same thing, there was so much attention it wasn’t like anything they have seen before. They all said too much attention, which is probably good if you are in pain.

Tim & Jeff was great. I just enjoyed talking with them over the phone. Whenever I called them, they would call me back, If i had a question. Even during the problems in Chicago with the Snow storms where I got stuck there for a day and a half and had to sleep in the airport and there was no shuttles driving to Hotels.

I would recommend Med Journeys to everyone. I met some many of Med Journeys other clients at the Guest House. I even saw a guy over there without insurance in US who had his heart pulled out of chest and had some arteries reworked and stents put in. He went over there to do it. It cost him $20,000. He said is deductable in the US would have been $40,000 because the operation was around $300,000-$400,000 here in the US. He went over there and paid to have it done rather than going though the medical system in the US because his deductable would have been higher than the operation and trip over there.

And there was another lady who was over there for a good month and a half. She had a Gastric Bypass and she had lost 200 pounds and she had her excess skin which is called a body tuck and she stayed with me and I email her all the time. She was there quite a while and she was happy that she was able to get it done over there. It would have broke her here, she would have gone bankrupt.

And then there was one lady who had insurance but the insurance in US would not cover a pre existing condition, so she got her good hip done in the US because that wasn’t a pre existing condition and she had her Hip replaced that didn’t have problems on her right side then she waited a year and a half or so and went over to India because her insurance wouldn’t cover preexisting conditions and had her bad hip done over there. I was looking at her, she was an older lady, pretty well to do and I said, "Don’t you have insurance? Why are you here?" She said, my insurance would not cover my pre-existing bad hip so I had my good hip done in the US and waited to get up and about a little bit and then she called Med Journeys and they set her up to have her hip done in India because the US medical system would not cover because they said it was pre-existing.

Even people with insurance take advantage of Med Journeys not only people without insurance.

I recently accompanied my wife Karon on a journey to India so that she could have a Bilateral Knee Replacement performed on her. You’re probably thinking "OUCH!" at the idea of a 16,000 mile roundtrip combined with double knee surgery. But wait - it gets better: The operation was performed by a surgeon who we had never met; we stayed 25 days with a family who we did not know, in a country as foreign to us, as a 10 day fair without rain. You just might ask, "WHY". Well, the truth is, why not.

Karon’s first surgery for Arthritis was over 13 years ago. At that time, we had health insurance from my winter job, which I held for the health insurance benefits. However, due to pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes and arthritis, we have not been able to get health insurance under any circumstances for over 10 years. We have spent $20,000 out of pocket over the last 6 years for minor Arthritic Surgery and $3,000 for 6 shots that offered little or no help. Meanwhile, Karon’s condition deteriorated nearly 50% with each successive year. She desperately needed to have both knees replaced. The cost, estimated by her orthopedic surgeon: $100,000 to $140,000. Again, you’re probably thinking "OUCH!" So, despite Karon’s physical pain, the financial pain forced us to put off the operation.

Well, about three years ago, we saw a TV program about Medical Tourism. Since that first show, we have seen several follow up news articles that discussed surgery overseas as an alternative to taking a big hit on your retirement savings or even selling off your home in order to receive needed medical care. Through the internet, I began to make some inquiries directly with the various hospitals overseas. At first, I looked at several alternative countries, such as Mexico. However for orthopedic surgery, India offered numerous internationally certified hospitals. A comforting fact is that in the United States there are nearly 45,000 doctors of Indian origin.

When we began this quest, the price quoted was less than $12,000 for both knees. This of course was a lot different than $140,000. I thought about trying to organize this solution on my own. After all, as concessionaires who dealing with the numerous responsibilities we have, it comes naturally for most of us to "just get it done" and handle things by ourselves. That’s what I was doing. But there were several things that became bothersome to us. We would be in a country we had never been to before, by ourselves, having major surgery by who knows, without any support, 8,000 miles away from home. All kinds of what ifs began to quash my hopes of doing this on my own. So it was with reluctance that I also inquired with a few medical tourism companies.

A gentleman by the name of Tim Wallace, from one of those medical tourism companies, Med Journeys, from the U.S., would contact me every now and then, ask how things were going and if he could assist me with any questions I might have. Over the next 2 years we developed a relationship and would converse either by phone or email. I first asked him how much extra it would cost us for his services. He said, everything was paid for by the hosting hospital and surgeon. Of course I was going to check this out. After all, we all ready had the quotes from the various hospitals. The difference, it turned out, was negligible. So, in November, we contracted with Med Journeys for Karon’s surgery.

Although the Dollar has taken a beating this last year against the Indian Rupee, the increased cost that resulted was only about $2,000. I was prepared for that. The surgeon from The Fortis Hospital, Dr. RajaGopal, highly recommended the Zimmer Knee Replacement for women. This additional price began to take us out of our comfort zone. I spoke with Mr. Wallace, and Med Journeys negotiated a fair price for us.

What sold us on contracting with Med Journeys was the fact we had our own Indian Host Manager, or Personal Concierge, assigned to us, who, was with us every step of the way. Our host’s name was Ms. Prabha Chawla, a very lovely and caring person. We first met her upon arrival in New Delhi. She was available to us 24 hours a day. When you are in a country you are not familiar with, around people and places you know nothing about, it is certainly comforting having such a wonderful resource available.

Our total package price was about $20,000 and included everything imaginable: round trip air from Orlando to New Delhi, India; transportation to and from the airport; transportation by private car to and from the hospital; a deluxe hospital room that accommodated me as well as Karon; all medical procedures; all medications; a therapist who came to the guest house daily; guest house (what a treat) for the remainder of our stay - including 3 meals a day; assistance with all paperwork, doctors appointments, visa’s; our own prepaid cell phone that was good for calls back home at .10 a minute; and, of course, Ms. Prabha. Nothing was left undone.

Fortis Hospital Vasant Kunj was as modern, clean and as high tech as anything we have at home. The nurses and staff go beyond accommodating when it comes to making a Westerner feel well, almost pampered. They provide a post-op nurse around the clock. The facility even has Wi Fi that allowed me to stay connected back home. After our first meeting with Dr. Rajgopal, Karon commented that he was the first Orthopedic Surgeon who spoke to her and not about her. She felt very comfortable after her first of several meetings with both the doctor and his staff of doctors and therapist. We give our heart felt thanks to the wonderful hospital and medical staff. They truly made us feel respected and, most importantly, well taken care of.

Our guesthouse was The CharterHouse, home to the Bhutani family. Mr. and Mrs. Bhutani, their son, his wife, and their two children. Yep, it truly felt like home. Our room was more like a small apartment rather than a hotel room. Their home is truly beautiful by any standards and we felt privileged to share in their home. The real treat was the family, and we had an instant report with every member. The daughter-in-law took care of special accommodations after surgery and arranged for a nurse to give Karon the prescribed daily shots. Nothing went unattended. We kept in contact with Ms. Prabha daily. At the CharterHouse, we had three meals a day - the same food the family ate. We had a driver and a car available 24 hours a day. Our laundry attended to for a minor sum. And here too, we had wireless internet access.

With Karon on the mend it was time to explore Delhi, India and the surrounding areas. One of my dearest friends since 3rd grade, Kenny Cooper and I were speaking on the phone of our pending trip to India I said he should join us. He said that sounds great and flew out for our last two weeks in India. This did afford me the opportunity for several day trips around Delhi and of course Agra and the magnificent Taj Mahal.

I find the people of India to be without any reservations some of the most blessed people in the world. India’s culture goes back over 1,200 years. As a westerner, you receive a lot of stares and second looks. Not being bashful, I would smile and greet the person with the second look. Oh my goodness - we would share a conversation until I wished to end it.

Mark Twain once wrote, "India is, the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of tradition our most valuable and most instructive materials in history of man are treasured in India only." He also wrote, "so far as I am able to judge, nothing has been left undone, either by man or nature to make India the most extraordinary country that the sun visits in its rounds. Nothing has been forgotten nothing over looked."

On our day trips I decided, they don’t use steering wheels in India, just a big round HORN. Yes there are cows and bulls walking peacefully around with the traffic. We saw snake charmers on the street corners where the traffic jams up. Elephants and camels hauling various items. We saw men on bicycles hauling a thousand pounds of metal rebar. Women digging trenches and building fences. We saw thousands of people riding their only mass transit for now - the blue bus powered by compressed natural gas. Thousands of Vespa-like three wheel cabs also powered by compressed natural gas. There are over 1.1 BILLION people in India, over 15 million alone in Delhi. India has over 1,600 languages or dialects and the one thing that allows them to converse is English. We also saw in Delhi a new mass transit system under construction, as modern as tomorrow. Skyscrapers, any large metro area in the US would be proud to have as part of their skyline. India proudly embraces its past - preserving cultural and architectural treasures for any traveler to delight in. Yet, India simultaneously forges ahead with development and modernization. This dichotomy can only work in a nation like India - where sincerity and ambition are not mutually exclusive. Somehow, India brings the past and future together in the present. And it does so with ease.

We are now home. Karon has left her cane beside her chair and only uses it to get my attention. As a bonus, we have a lifetime of memories from our great journey to India. We are now truly looking forward to a successful summer fair season.