Does Zika pose a threat to medical tourism?

The World Health Organisation has declared the Zika Virus a global health emergency, with an estimated 3 to 4 million people in danger of being affected. Ian Youngman assesses the impact of the emergence of the Zika virus to the medical tourism sector.

While the Zika virus is not new, it is new to the Americas. The first case was reported in Brazil in early 2015. It has spread through South and Central America, then to the Caribbean, and on to Puerto Rico.

No locally transmitted Zika cases acquired from mosquito bites have been reported in the USA or Europe, but cases have been reported in travellers returning from areas where Zika is present.

The actual numbers affected are not the issue; it is the effect of the fear factor that we have seen before when concerns have been raised about Avian flu and AIDS.

A global public health emergency

As the virus continues to spread, Zika has been declared a global public health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). On the American continent alone, 3 to 4 million people could be affected in 2016. Numbers in Europe are not known. Those in Africa, Asia and the Gulf cannot afford to be complacent as it is expected to reach there soon, with the biggest risk being in Africa.

Since the virus presents a real threat to human health, it is likely to impact the tourism revenue in several countries across Latin America and the Caribbean.

The spread of the Zika virus is worrying Latin American tourism authorities. According to the World Bank, 25 countries will be affected by travel warnings because of the risks related to the Zika virus, something that will damage Latin American tourism and cause a loss of $63.9 billion to the countries concerned.

There is no separate figure for medical tourism, but when tourism falls, medical tourism tends to fall faster and much further, particularly if the threat is a health one.

Mexico is expected to suffer more than other countries. The Brazilian tourism industry will be the second most affected. Then come the Caribbean, Panama, Argentina, and Colombia. Puerto Rico has the disease too. Significantly, all these countries are popular medical tourism destinations for Americans and Canadians.

Zika causes mild illness in some but reports indicate Zika may be linked to serious birth defects in babies of mothers infected with this virus while pregnant.

The Zika virus is spread primarily through the bite of an infected mosquito. These are the same mosquitoes that spread other viruses like dengue and chikungunya. Only about one in five people infected with the Zika virus will feel sick. In those that do, symptoms are usually mild and can include fever, rash, and joint pain.

People are contracting Zika in areas where Aedes mosquitoes are present, which include South America, Central America and the Caribbean. Anyone who is living in or travelling to an area where the virus is found is at risk of infection.

The reason for the mild panic is that there is no vaccine to prevent this disease.

Advice to medical tourists

I looked for advice to potential medical tourists either from associations, agencies, hospitals or promotional bodies connected to medical tourism. I have found nothing.

Sadly, when there is a problem that could affect medical tourists, whether it is disease, terrorism, natural disaster or war, the medical tourism industry has a tendency to go into ostrich mode, hides its head in the sand and hopes the problem will go away.

Individuals and organisations involved in medical tourism should at least warn customers and give prevention advice for anybody travelling to at risk countries. To do nothing is not helpful to the image of medical tourism and shows a lack of concern for potential customers.