Gareth+-+Memo+-+21

__Memo 21: Interview__

The following is a sample script layout of an interview of a patient, it would be substantially different for a medical professional, and it remains incomplete:

INTERVIEWER READS: “While all of us have some personal ideas about medicine, I am interested in studying views of those who have chosen to travel to get treatment.

I will ask a series of questions in order to understand in part how you make healthcare choices, and to find out about your experiences up to now, and to know what you think about medicine in general . In order to approach these questions I am interviewing both patients and doctors and after the interview I am happy to answer any questions you have about my research. The questions will be divided between background, recent experiences and open questions about medicine, and I’ll try to modify them in response to your previous answers.

I will be recording the interviews so that I am able to more closely compare interviews, and prevent errors in interpreting your answers. All interviewees have the option of anonymity as marked on the permission form you have in front of you, and the recordings will be private.”

“Do you have any questions about the interview at this time?”

“Please begin by stating your full name and profession.”

Background- Please tell me where you are from, and anything else you think is important for me to know. Would you please tell me about your general state of health? What is your access to healthcare at home? Do you have health insurance? How often do you seek medical attention, regular checkups? Have you ever had major surgery? Who are you traveling with?

Would you please describe where you first heard about, or becoming aware of medical tourism or travel for care?

Have you known anyone else who was a medical tourist? Where did you do research before making a decision? How did you find information? Describe the conversation, the reaction from your healthcare provider/doctor?

How did you decide to travel for care? Tell me about the process of planning and making arrangements to come? Describe the actual steps in the decision making, before and during the planning? Did you talk to friends? Research online? Read books? How often had you traveled abroad before this trip? What did you know about India/Philippines before starting this process? Had you wanted to travel to Asia before you thought about this trip? How do you consider this as an option for seeking medical treatment? How would you evaluate your care/access to medicine back home?

Please walk me through your medical tourism experience, starting from packing to come, and tell me about the trip itself? What was your feeling about the country when you arrived? About the health center? About your doctor? How does this compare to your previous experiences with medicine in your home country? Has anything surprised you? Describe the details of your pre-operative care and examination? How has your recovery been? What have your companions been doing during the trip?

Could you tell me how you feel about being called a medical tourist? Have you changed at all because of this trip? How has your idea about medical tourism changed?

Has this hospital provided good medicine? What makes this “good medicine? Is the medicine the same here as at home? Are you treated well by doctors here? At home? By nurses and staff? What are you going to tell friends about this experience?

In the Philippines – How do you see the Philippines in relation to the US? Are you aware of the long connection between the US and Philippines politically? Do you consider the Philippines “developed” or “modern”?

Traditionally Philippine doctors charged each patient differently depending on the patients income, and their personal relationship with a doctor, in an effort to promote med tourism and ‘modernization’ there has been an active effort to standardize prices. would you have been less likely to travel if the price was individually negotiated?

India and the Philippines are competitors for medical tourists, why did you come here?