Introduction To remain profitable in today’s competitive environment, organizations must seek out ways to increase their domain; globalization has become a popular and successful means of doing this. Globalization allows companies to buy and sell goods across international borders as well as establish operations in foreign countries (Hill, 2014, p. 5). Not only does this process allow countries to capitalize on their specific strengths and decrease their production costs by purchasing cheaper inputs, but also gives organizations, as well as consumers, a wider variety of products and services to choose from. Globalization can be seen in a number of markets by a number of organizations. Nike Inc., for example, purchases all of its inputs and
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The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) has broken down many barriers to the free flow of goods and services (p. 10), which has made it easier for patients and health care facilities to seek the expertise and resources of other countries. Technology has played a significant role in this healthcare trend as well (p. 12); computers, telecommunications, and the Internet have all decreased the breadth of our world economy. Health facilities can now easily capitalize on the knowledge and skills of workers in countries with lower labor costs, through a computer and Internet connection. Transportation has also improved in the past 20 years; now it is a simple and relatively inexpensive (comparatively speaking) venture to purchase an airline ticket and fly to any location in the world (p. …show more content…
For those who elect to travel to foreign countries to receive medical treatment, they may receive care for a substantial discount compared to American healthcare services. This alone makes globalized healthcare an attractive alternative to the exorbitant health care costs present in our country. While the decreased costs of the actual medical care may be reduced, patients must also consider the costs associated with travel and recovery time. The less-expensive medical care/procedure, coupled with the costs of airfare, room and board, and other costs incurred with foreign travel, may equal out to what they would have paid domestically. Additionally, this type of medical tourism is not without its risks. The Center for Disease Control cite differences in sharps handling and bodily fluid screening, as well as communication problems, localized antibiotic-resistant germs, and poor quality medicine all as significant concerns patients must consider when making these types of decisions (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). A substandard procedure in a foreign country could cause thousands of dollars in medical care to remedy. Should this happen, the globalization of healthcare could be devastating for the patient and his/her
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) has broken down many barriers to the free flow of goods and services (p. 10), which has made it easier for patients and health care facilities to seek the expertise and resources of other countries. Technology has played a significant role in this healthcare trend as well (p. 12); computers, telecommunications, and the Internet have all decreased the breadth of our world economy. Health facilities can now easily capitalize on the knowledge and skills of workers in countries with lower labor costs, through a computer and Internet connection. Transportation has also improved in the past 20 years; now it is a simple and relatively inexpensive (comparatively speaking) venture to purchase an airline ticket and fly to any location in the world (p. …show more content…
For those who elect to travel to foreign countries to receive medical treatment, they may receive care for a substantial discount compared to American healthcare services. This alone makes globalized healthcare an attractive alternative to the exorbitant health care costs present in our country. While the decreased costs of the actual medical care may be reduced, patients must also consider the costs associated with travel and recovery time. The less-expensive medical care/procedure, coupled with the costs of airfare, room and board, and other costs incurred with foreign travel, may equal out to what they would have paid domestically. Additionally, this type of medical tourism is not without its risks. The Center for Disease Control cite differences in sharps handling and bodily fluid screening, as well as communication problems, localized antibiotic-resistant germs, and poor quality medicine all as significant concerns patients must consider when making these types of decisions (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). A substandard procedure in a foreign country could cause thousands of dollars in medical care to remedy. Should this happen, the globalization of healthcare could be devastating for the patient and his/her