Number of patients in South Korea grows

The number of foreign residents or tourists using medical services in the country greatly surged from a year earlier in 2012, the government said Monday, amid efforts here to expand the so-called medical tourism industry.The number of foreigners using medical services in the country reached 155,672 last year, up 27.3 percent from 122,297 in the previous year, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The 2012 tally also exceeded the government target of 150,000.The total amount of money spent by foreign patients also surged 32.1 percent on-year to some 239 billion won (US$210 million) with the average amount of medical expenses spent by each patient coming to 1.54 million won.The per-capita spending of foreign patients was 48 percent higher than 1.04 million won spent by each local patient, the ministry said, adding that the number of foreign patients who spent over 100 million won in medical expenses grew by over three-fold from 27 in 2011 to 83 last year.By nationality, Chinese citizens made up the largest group of patients from a single country, followed by those from the United States and Japan, in that order. The number of Chinese patients using medical services here spiked 63.7 percent on-year with the number of patients from Russia also jumping 69.2 percent to make up the fourth-largest group of patients from a single country.To help attract more patients from overseas, the country is set to host an international conference on health care and medical tourism in Seoul this week.The ministry said nearly 250 business meetings between South Korean medical institutes and foreign buyers will be held during the three-day conference slated to begin Tuesday.