Healthcare Elsewhere | The Medical Tourism Show with John Cote

Linsey Hyatt shares the struggle of her son Tucker Beau who was diagnosed with Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis at the age of two. Prior to his diagnosis, Linsey and her husband, Todd, started to see some changes in their son. He would run extremely high temperatures, would get a rash all over his body and completely quits eating. Tucker Beau grew up with active arthritis in his hips, both knees and ankles, his elbow and both his wrists. At that time, he also developed fluid around his heart and other organs were enlarged and inflamed. They tried several treatment options but these treatments never fully kept the arthritis in remission. Linsey and Todd knew that Tucker Beau's body cannot keep up with the medications and they wanted to explore all possible options until such time they heard about Celltex and stem cell treatment. They took a leap of faith with Celltex because they believed that these stem cells may not work but could not harm him in any way. He was the first child in the U.S. to undergo stem cell therapy.  Tucker Beau had his first extraction last May of 2014 and had his first infusion therapy in Cancun on August 2014. Find out more how stem cell treatment has changed the lives of Tucker Beau and his parents and how this treatment had him walk back on his own two feet for the longest time.

Fiona Cunningham shared the lifelong battle of her daughter Sarah Hughes with her illness that started when she was still an infant. Sarah lived normally when she was born but not until she turned 6 months old that they noticed lymph nodes on her legs while she was sitting up and crawling. Her temperatures at that time was at its peak and she started to get some rashes too. Fiona was advised by her sister to bring Sarah to Mayo Clinic which at 11-months old, Sarah was fully diagnosed to have Systemic Juvenile Arthritis. Sarah's life was generally at risk due to her illness. Her systemic nature started attacking her digestive system and made it difficult for her to eat. At that time, she was on two doses of chemotherapy, steroids and taking 23 drugs literally just to keep her alive but her body wasn't really responding to these treatments. Fortunately, Fiona was employed in the Arthritis Foundation to which she found out about Celltex and learned about stem cell treatments. The decision to receive stem cell treatments, although not immediate, was an easier decision to make for Sarah. She had her first infusion on November 2014 of 600 million stem cells to which she received in Mexico. Prior to the stem cell infusion, Sarah was mostly at bed rest. However, 6 months after her treatment, she felt energetic and was able to eat food she had never eaten before. Sarah's life after stem cell treatment has changed a lot and seeing her now has given hope for people with no hope. Find out more about this inspiring journey of Sarah and her mother, Fiona.

Dr. Gerhard Subenhuner from the German Medical Center located in Frankfurt, Germany was joined by Martin Czaikowski, who is the Vice Director of the German Cancer Society shares the breakthrough therapies and treatments they use in their country that is proven to be effective in treating various types of cancers. These include hyperthermia, insulin potentiation therapy, detoxification or a combination of each practiced only in Germany. Pharmacies in Germany are allowed to promote drugs and substances which are very known to be successful in treating cancer but for some reasons, the big companies would not produce it.  In this episode, Gerhard and Martin have detailed the processes involved in each type of treatment and how one patient from Australia and another patient from Netherlands, who traveled to Germany, have both had successful results using these treatments. Find out how these therapies work and the processes involved in it and how effective it is in treating a patient with cancer.

Lisa Cohen is the published author of the book called “Overcome The BS of MS: A 3-Step Plan For Women Living With Multiple Sclerosis” and the founder of Rockstar Women with MS. In 2001, Lisa was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS and at that point, her symptoms don't come and go. She experienced worsening physical impairments which made her daily activities more difficult to do. After much realization, Lisa has developed a "rockstar" mindset and believed that there are options to get better and be the person she wanted to be. She got used to dealing with the illness and it became easier for her to live the rockstar life. Through her own experience and by talking to women suffering from MS in the different states in the US and in other countries, Lisa was compelled to write the book which aims to empower women and help them live actively to further improve their way of life.

Dr. Robyn Benson is the Founder and CEO of Healthy Travelers Global Summit and the Founder of Santa Fe Soul Center for Optimal Health. She is also the author of the book called Healthy Traveler’s Guide: Retrain, Regain, and Renew Yourself – Eight Pathways to Smart and Conscious Travel. Her 23 years of medical experience and her travel quests into 70 different countries have changed her life and have brought the best of her skills and knowledge to every treatment she provides her patients. Her passion is to take people through a major transformation in their healthcare as well as empower them to take charge of their own well being for years to come. They provide different services which varies from Acupuncture, IV Therapies, Life Coaching, Chiropractic, Prolozone, Skin Regeneration, Therapeutic Massage and many others. They also provide a two-day retreat for patients who are determined on improving their healthcare. This year Robyn will be hosting the Healthy Traveler's Global Summit wherein she will be interviewing 30 highly-acclaimed medical and travel experts and hear insights from them about the health, wellness and travel industry.

Pat Ziemer is the Founder and CEO of Magna Wave Inc. which operates on a device called Pulsed Electro-Magnetic Field (PEMF) Therapy equipment for the last 10 years. This device has been widely used in Europe to treat humans for more than 30 years already. It is a device that creates a very strong magnetic field of about 1700-1900 Gauss which is basically stronger than any other MRI devices. These magnetic fields go into the tissue of the body which makes the cell wall more permeable allowing more oxygen into the cells and helps the cells function more properly.  The process helps reduce pain, inflammation and also promotes healing in a non-invasive manner. People who suffer from mild to severe conditions can benefit from this therapy and through the high voltage of Magna Wave, immediate results can be felt after the first treatment. Find out how this medical device has helped improve the lives of many people experiencing pain and other conditions. 

Pablo Castillo is the Founder and CEO of Medbrick, a Montreal, Canada-based company which caters to Canadian patients wanting to receive healthcare specifically in Latin America. Canadians typically use their public system for their healthcare, however, in some cases, medical procedures are not covered by their system and these treatments are expensive if done in the private hospitals which could be very costly if paid out-of-pocket. This led to the founding of Medbrick 5 years ago to help patients receive medical treatments abroad giving them a huge amount of savings but still receive great quality of service. In this episode, Pablo also shared about the first Canadian Medical Tourism Tradeshow to be held in Canada this August gathering the medical and wellness providers all over the world which aims to educate Canadians and help them gain more awareness of the opportunity to receive medical care abroad.

Ken and Carol Purves narrate their wonderful experience when they traveled down to Mexico to receive dental treatments. Their trip was facilitated by Dental Departures and were attended by Sani Dental Group in Los Algodones, which is basically just minutes away from the US border. In this episode, Ken and Carol shared about the extensive dental procedures they had which is way cheaper than what they could have in Canada or in the US. They have also taken into account how the dental staff of Sani Dental Group displayed an excellent level of professionalism and dedication to their service. Find out about this interesting story and how traveling to Mexico has brought back their confidence.

Paul McTaggart is the Founder and CEO of Dental Departures which is based in the United States facilitating dental services to patients allowing them the ability to travel to different countries to receive quality dental care at an affordable cost. Their objective in putting up Dental Departures was to make it easy for people to find quality global dentists at the most secure and most cost-effective way. Find out how Paul and his staff ensure an excellent overall experience for patients and helping them achieve a quality of life through their smiles.

Dr. Cristy Kessler is a motivational speaker, author, a tenured professor in University of Hawaii and a survivor. For the first 26 years of her life, Dr. Kessler has been in chronic pain and fatigue and in 2007 she was diagnosed with three rare autoimmune diseases: scleroderma, ankylosing spondylitis, and vasculitis. She received several treatments and medications in the different hospitals in the US which, apparently, did not seem to be a success because they were only treating the symptoms not the disease itself. Because of this, Dr. Kessler, together with her rheumatologist, decided that she finds other healthcare options for her illness and made a choice to live. In 2011, she traveled to Istanbul, Turkey to receive stem cell transplant which literally saved and changed her life. Find out more of this inspiring story!  

This is the first episode of 2015 and Dr. Michael Belich has graced us with this interview wherein he shares his takeaways from his recently attended event called Exponential Medicine held in San Diego last November 9-12, 2014 at The Hotel Del Coronado. The Exponential Medicine event was basically a gathering of thought leaders in the field of science and technology and various organizations from across the globe whose vision and mission is to change our perception of technology and medicine and how we can utilize these technological innovations as an opportunity to improve one's healthcare, wellness and quality of life.   

Jason Jordan is currently living in Germany where him and his wife are teachers in the Department of Defense School. In this episode, Jason shares the health challenges that his wife had faced during their first two years of living in Germany. Find out how their US provided private health insurance became the key for them to be able to get the healthcare they need for his wife. 

Chien-Wei Tan is the Director of Ulink Assist based in Singapore which has been established and founded by his parents in 1996. Their experience in providing medical assistance has been one of the many reasons why patients have sought for their services for the past several years. With the thousands of patients that they have helped, patients are assured that their well-being are prioritized and any uncertainties are being removed. Find out how this experienced, independent assistance provider, is able to attend to every patients need they serve with their high quality service.

Antony DeSousa is the Founder and CEO of Dental Destinations Cancun which is also an affiliate of Dentares located in Cancun, Mexico. Cancun has been know  as a beautiful destination for vacation and travel and is also known to offer, not only, quality medical treatments but dental treatments as well at a very affordable cost. Because of their passion in providing quality dental treatments, Antony and his team of experienced dental experts have siginificantly changed the lives of their patients and have helped them gain their confidence back through their wonderful smiles.

Abbi and Mark MacDonald are the founders of Venice Nutrition. Mark is also the author of the best selling book called Body Confidence Unlocks Potential. In this episode, they shared the health challenges Abbi had faced because of the autoimmune diseasr called fibromyalgia and how they overcame it.

Servando Acuña is the President of Medical Tourism Association - Cancun. It was formed under ethical principles that basically helps create awareness to patients on the best available healthcare services in Mexico. They represent a group of healthcare institutions that aims to provide quality and certified care at an affordable cost. 

Dr. Todd Malan is named as the Chief Cell Therapy Officer at the Okyanos Heart Institute based in the Bahamas. On October 2009, he pioneered the stem cell research utilizing the adipose or fat-derived stem cells to help breast reconstruction. For several years of clinical research, Dr. Todd Malan and his team was able to come up with the first stem cell-based procedure that treats advanced heart diseases using the patient’s own adipose-derived stem cells which are infused directly onto the heart via catheter.  Find out more how this technological advancement can help improve the quality of life patients with severe heart diseases.

Lori Shea is the Founder and CEO of Guatemala Medical Travel which started in 2009.  She is an advocate to patients and assures them that they receive the finest medical care in Guatemala. They have spent many years in establishing a professional relationship with their network of educated, skilled and honest doctors and surgeons. Full-medical service and attention are provided to international patients by caring assistants from the initial consultation right through 100% recovery and voyage home which literally makes a patient stress-free. Find out more about the Guatemalan Healthcare and what separates them from other medical tourism companies.  

John Koehn is from Ames, Iowa and in this episode, he shares how his 16-year old brother with Autism, improved his cognitive ability through Stem Cell treatment. Prior to treatments, John's brother has low cognitive abilities i.e. no basic understanding of what time it is, no basic recognition of how many years there are in a year and has an IQ of 55. Her mother, on the other hand, made some research and started to talk to people in discussion groups and found out about stem cell treatments in Greece. In 2010, they scheduled an appointment in Greece wherein liposuction was performed prior to extract adipose (fat) tissue for the stem cell treatment. Within a couple of weeks, his younger brother began to manifest promising improvements. He is now able to understand dates and the concept of time and reading a watch began to sink in. Find out more how his brother's life has bettered and how they attributed it to stem cell treatments.

Vasilica Baltatineau is tagged as the First Plastic Surgery Consulant in the Middle East. As a consultant, patients come to her and help them by providing information about any procedure that they think they might benefit from and makes sure that these patients are directed towards the best doctors or surgeons that will help them aesthetically. She provides experienced and neutral advice to patients to help them decide which path is ideal for them. She thoroughly and continuously performs research on doctors who would best attend to the needs of the patients before she vets them out. Find out how Vasilica  has helped several patients lessen their costs and time in sorting out the best information and doctors.  

Angela Chouaib is the Founder and CEO of Secret Surgery Ltd. In 2009 Angela had lost 10 stone through Gastric Bypass surgery and didn’t want to wait 2 years for the plastic surgery she need on the NHS. Angela then spent 3 to 4 months search out all the options, including surgery in the UK and abroad. She started to feel like a number in the whole process, encountering many ‘sharks’ and sales consultants before stumbling across a wonderful clinic in Poland who were prompt in responding, extremely courteous and actually understood her needs as a patient. In April 2010, after much deliberation, Angela went to Poland to have her tummy tuck – she booked on the understanding that she wasn’t fully committed to having any procedures until she met with the surgeon and enjoyed a good look around the hospital to check that everything was as it said it would be on the website; which it was! Angela felt like royalty and was treated like a VIP from start to finish. It was so good she returned 1 month later for a breast reduction and uplift. Angela then realized that still no one offered a packaged holiday solution to the UK market; thus, Secret Surgery Limited was founded. Angela decided to build the business not to exploit the market, but to help the millions of people that couldn't afford surgery in the UK and were attracted to the competitive prices offered in Poland. For those frightened to travel abroad on their own like she did, or want a hassle free alternative, Secret Surgery was her idea for ‘one stop shop’ – a ready-made, hassle-free solution to affordable, exemplary cosmetic surgery abroad.

Dr. Sanjay Prasad is the Founder and CEO of SurgiPrice located in Rockville, Maryland. They started in 2007 as a marketplace for patients to become empowered in coming up with an informed decision. By doing so, patients are empowered by providing them with data on quality, parameters, past experiences and outcomes that a certain surgeon has. They also provide patients with a multiple bundled bids from the company's network of elite surgeons and these transparencies aid patients in opting for a more experienced surgeon at an affordable and reasonable cost. Discover more how Dr. Prasad and his team are very much passionate and committed in providing excellent patient care and helping them attain the value that they deserve. This interview was recorded at the World Medical Tourism Congress in Washington D.C. where John was a featured speaker in September

Dr. Michael Belich is one of the doctors of Regenerative Medicine in Autologous Stem Cell Technology (ASCT) and the principal doctor of Integrative Medical Clinics in Brisbane, Australia. He is also with Anes Nicolao who is the General Manager of ASCT. In ASCT, they optimize the patient's health before and after surgery which follows the usual methods of extracting stem cells from the body including bone marrow, adipose tissue and blood(PRP). They can also create pluripotent and multi-potent stem cells that can be directed into different cell lines. Discover more about the common types of diseases that they treat using stem cells and what protocols they follow to ensure safety among patients who seek for their help. This interview was recorded at the World Medical Tourism Congress in Washington D.C. where John was a featured speaker in September 2014.

Tucson Dunn is the CEO of Medicover Hospital located in Warsaw, Poland. He was a former US Army Veteran and has had 20 years of International Healthcare Experience. Medicover is a 180-bed private general hospital which provides treatments including maternity, orthopedics, general surgery, and cardiology. They offer a full-type service to their international patients at a very reasonable and transparent pricing. Tucson chose Poland over the other countries he has been to because of the overall friendliness of the people and the safe and excellent medical care in the country. They also boast of quality hospitals, facilities and quality hospital staff as well. Discover more about why Poland is making waves in the medical tourism industry and why many international patients are traveling there to receive medical treatment. This interview was recorded at the World Medical Tourism Congress in Washington D.C. where John was a featured speaker in September 2014.

Magdalena Rutkowska is a very experienced medical facilitator from Warsaw, Poland who runs her own company called Medical Travel Europe. She was hired by the Polish government to help promote Poland as a destination for medical tourism. She was appointed to become a representative of one of the company who is in the Consortium who are promoting in behalf of the Ministry of Economy Polish Medical Tourism which runs a 3-year program targeted at 7 market countries including United States, UK, Germany, Russia, Scandinavia among others. Find out more in this episode how Magdalena takes part in helping  Poland attract more international patients to experience their high quality - low cost treatments in their well-equipped medical facilities.  This interview was recorded at the World Medical Tourism Congress in Washington D.C. where John was a featured speaker in September 

Bill Mansell is the Director of Admissions at Sanoviv Medical Institute located at Rosarito Beach, Baja California, Mexico. It is a fully licensed hospital with cutting edge facilities and they are accredited by the Institute for Functional Medicine. They offer a holistic and integrative approach to help treat a certain disease and elevate one's immune system to make sure that the disease will not come back.In this episode, Bill shared a story of a mother who is a lung cancer patient from Canada who underwent a series of medical treatments locally. At a certain point during her treatment, the doctor told her to set her affairs in order and plan for her funeral because there was nothing more they could do to treat her. She sought help online and found Sanoviv where she was placed under the Intensive Cancer Program which shrank her tumor by 80% in a very short time.Find out in detail what the multi-pronged and aggressive approach Sanoviv uses to help treat patients with cancer and other diseases.This interview was recorded at the World Medical Tourism Congress in Washington D.C. where John was a featured speaker in September 2014.

Dr. Chandy Abraham is the Medical Director of Health City Cayman Islands which recently opened its doors to local and international patients last April 2014. They are composed of medical professionals who provide high quality and world-class services and offers excellence in several surgical procedures. They are currently working on their accreditation by the Joint Commission International (JCI) and envisions to provide care in all specialties in their state-of-the-art hospital. Find out how Dr. Chandy Abraham and his team of professionals work on reducing costs to medical care and administer transparencies to pricing without losing the quality in their healthcare services.       

Dr. Ernesto Gutierrez is the President and Medical Director of World Stem Cells Clinic which is the stand-alone stem cell research center based in Cancun, Mexico where novel autologous stem cell therapeutic applications are being developed since 2010. They aim to provide advancements in the field of regenerative medicine, particularly stem cell therapy, to improve the patient's quality and quantity of life. Dr. Gutierrez and his team are very much committed in moving a step further and improving their procedures and methods to address a wide variety of medical conditions. He is also passionate about training and developing medical professionals by allowing them to visit, learn and participate in World Stem Cells Clinic's state-of-the-art laboratory and research facility. 

Debra Simons is the Founder and CEO of Weight No More Consulting Ltd which started in 2011 and is based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Years back, Debra has always had concerns about her weight and had suffered from obesity wherein she acquired Type 2 diabetes. This incident led her to a decision to travel down to Mexico and receive a weight-loss surgery with one of the top bariatric surgeons in Tijuana - Dr. Jaime Ponce de Leon. Discover how this surgery has changed the life of Debra and how she used this first-hand experience to help change the lives of other individuals suffering from obesity.

James Maskell is the Founder and CEO of Revive Primary Care and also the Founder of The Evolution of Medical Summit. The summit is basically a gathering of some of the world's trusted leaders in healthcare who act as agents of change and have a specific set of vision for a more evolved healthcare system. He envisions that medicine will be seen differently by both patients and healthcare practitioners over the next decades to come and how it can affect us in general. He believes that it is important for people to become educated on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and have a better understanding of the root causes of the epidemics of chronic diseases and what we can do to avoid it.

James Maskell is the Founder and CEO of Revive Primary Care and also the Founder of The Evolution of Medical Summit. The summit is basically a gathering of some of the world's trusted leaders in healthcare who act as agents of change and have a specific set of vision for a more evolved healthcare system. He envisions that medicine will be seen differently by both patients and healthcare practitioners over the next decades to come and how it can affect us in general. He believes that it is important for people to become educated on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and have a better understanding of the root causes of the epidemics of chronic diseases and what we can do to avoid it.

Sheri Burke is the Founder of International Patient Facilitators Inc. Their company started in 2008 and they were the first company to bring medical tourism patients into Cancun. She was appointed CEO in 2009 and has since helped many patients receive medical care in Mexico.IPF helps patients who are seeking Weight-loss surgery and In Vitro Fertilization procedures which are mainly done in Cancun and Tijuana, Mexico. Because of their work in these cities with the leading hospitals and surgery centers, they have located the most experienced bariatric medical team led by Dr. Sergio Verboonen who has dedicated 17 years of his career as bariatric surgeon.Find out more how Sheri and her team assist their patients in arriving at the most educated decision in terms of quality of care and results in weight loss surgery and other procedures.

Ken Kaldenbach is the Founder and Managing Director of Costa Rican Dental Solutions which started in 2009. They act as a bridge for dental patients seeking safe, quality and affordable dentistry in Costa Rica. Ken used to be a medical tourist himself and he discovered firsthand  the significant savings that could be achieved without sacrificing quality when comparing dentistry in Costa Rica to North America. Because of his skeptical nature in the concept of medical tourism, Ken set out to create a comprehensive service based on exhaustive evaluation and independent verification of dentistry and dentists in Costa Rica. After how many years of thorough selection and investigation,the company welcomed it’s first patient and continues to provide a trusted resource for discovering only the best, proven dentists and specialists to meet the varying dental needs of patients. 

Ieva Soblickaite is the co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Medigo launched in November 2013 in Berlin, Germany. In this episode, she is joined by Marianna Anderle who works on the Marketing and Quality Assurance sector of Medigo. Ieva leads the company's product strategy to create an intuitive platform that both patients and clinics could enjoy. Medigo is basically like a marketplace for medical tourism companies and patients alike which helps simplify the complex process of booking medical travel. They  help facilitate the searching, booking and arranging of treatment abroad, offering personal assistance along every step of the way. They aim to disrupt the entire healthcare industry by helping patients who desire affordable treatment, access to higher quality facilities or doctors, or who want to dramatically cut waiting times. Find out more what plans of actions they work on and services they offer to their patients which upholds their vision of making medical travel simple

Pat Marino is the Founder and CEO of Face Lift Mexico which is currently celebrating their 20th anniversary in the medical tourism industry. In this episode Pat shares their excellent surgical results and the 4-Star Spa called Spa Club Casa Marino where patients can spend their days recovering from their surgical procedure. Interestingly, in this episode, Pat  shares a success story of a 71- year old woman who underwent a facelift, full dental work, tummy tuck and breast implants and now looks 20 years younger. Find out more in this episode how Pat and her team address their patients' safety concerns and how their after care treatment works in their recovery spa. 

Axel Runyutu is from Nairobi, Kenya who had his first kidney transplant in 2006 in Nairobi but the kidney failed again in 2012. This transplant alone costed him around $25,000.  He was on dialysis for more than 2 years and just a month ago, he underwent his second Kidney Transplant in India that costed him $13,000 - $15,000 (including pre evaluation workup, transplant surgery, post surgery hospital stay - ICU) with the assistance of Bharat Soin of India Medicare Solutions. Find out how Axel is doing a month after his second transplant.

Dr. Rafael Gonzalez is the Vice President of Research and Development at Da Vinci Biosciences & DV Biologics and part of the Advisory Board of Rehealth. He is currently involved in clinical studies for the development of the use of adult derived stem cells for spinal cord injury, cardiovascular diseases and other debilitating disorders. In this episode, he discussed several technological advancements they are engaged in by using stem cells to treat several kinds of diseases particularly the cardiovascular ailments. Find out how patients can improve their quality of life through stem cell treatments.

Dr. Roger Landry is a preventive medicine physician and the author of Live Long, Die Short: A Guide to Authentic Health and Successful Aging and President of Masterpiece Living. He is a retired, highly-decorated full colonel, former chief flight surgeon at the Air Force Surgeon General’s Office in Washington, preventive medicine physician who has spent over a decade smashing stereotypes of aging, and redefining the possibilities of older adulthood. Dr. Landry shares how lifestyle acts as a determining factor of how we age individually and the profound negative effects of modern day stress. He also shares that we can limit the time we are sick and impaired at any age, and it’s the choices we make every day – easy choices – that that allow us to do this. Find out more how moving, social connection and challenging our brains can help us reduce risks of getting diseases and achieving a healthy lifestyle. 

Josef Woodman is the CEO and Founder of Patients Beyond Borders and the author of a book by the same name. He is one of the world's leading experts on Medical Tourism and he has traveled to more than 200 medical facilities in 35 countries, researching and vetting international healthcare options. He is an excellent, outspoken advocate of affordable, high-quality medical and preventive care for healthcare consumers worldwide.  Find out in this episode what inspired Josef to venture in the rapidly growing medical tourism industry and how he uses his knowledge and experiences to educate people about medical tourism and global healthcare options. 

Dr. A.K Venkatachalam is an orthopedic surgeon from Chennai, India. He deals with ceramic hip, knee and shoulder replacements and also offers stem cell treatments for cartilage and bone. In this episode, you will learn about one of his patients who needed a key hole surgery for his knee and asked his help since the patient did not have any insurance coverage. Find out more how Dr. Venkatachalam is able to provide individual care and how he further improves on his skills and knowledge to benefit patients needing his services.

Nick Kwan is the Co-Founder of the South American Medical Tourism company called Medko Health. It is located in Santiago, Chile and this company serves as a platform to match the best doctors to patients with specific medical needs.  In this episode, Nick shares about Amanda, a Criminal Law student in Indiana, who was recently aided by Medko find a doctor for her genetic disorders and Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. Find out more how Nick and his team from Medko uses a non-traditional medical tourism approach in helping connect their doctors to their patients with specific medical needs. 

Marise Cipriani is originally born in Brazil, and now a resident of Colorado. 13 years ago, her husband was diagnosed with Esophageal Cancer and that he was given only 2 and a half years to live. But he had so much faith that he knew there is a solution for his illness. Find out what treatments Marise's husband has underwent and how he was rendered cancer-free since then. 

Dr. Gerardo Ramirez is the Founder and Medical Director of CR Doctors which is entirely devoted to medical services; CR stands for Costa Rica and they promote Costa Rica as the best optio  for health tourism in Latin America. Their company offers a wide variety of surgical procedures which costs one-third of the cost of procedure in the US and other European countries. Their goal is mainly to provide and guarantee the satisfaction and safety of the patients among others.

Julie Munro is a medical travel facilitator as well as the President of Medical Travel and Quality Alliance. She founded her medical concierge business Cosmetic Surgery Travel in 2003.  Julie began to direct her work  at MTQUA toward building an awareness in the public and in the healthcare sector of the problems in medical tourism that often prevent from getting the patients the best outcomes. MTQUA developed an international certification program to raise the standard of treatment and care in medical tourism no matter where you go for care and what you have done.

Colin Milner is the Founder and CEO of  International Council on Active Aging (ICAA). Over the years, he has watched how his grandmother has aged extremely well. He attributed the good health condition of her grandmother to her positive outlook in life. In this episode, he shares how our outlook in life creates an impact on how we age and on our health as well. Find out more how Colin and his organization help educate people on how to age well and achieve longevity and a quality of life.

Perry Hunt is currently in a job site in Missouri but originally from Huntington Beach, California. It was approximately 3 years that he began to realize that he had a back problem through MRI. He tried a seeing a therapist and a chiropractor to help him remedy his problem wherein he found out that he needed to do a full hip replacement surgery. He was set to go to Houston, TX to have a 2-week pre-op and laboratory examination for his surgery only to find out that his insurance could not cover the hospital fees amounting to $100,000. Perry cancelled the surgery and researched for a solution to his problem. He googled out cash surgeries and led him to the website of Medibid. Find out how Perry was helped by Medibid get his surgery at a reasonable price and how this surgery has changed his life since then. 

A self-insured furniture manufacturing company lead by Tim Isenhower came up with a program that provides opportunities to their employees to go to other countries to have a certain procedure done. This is provided by the company as a medical benefit package wherein 100% of the expenses are covered by them and even share 20% of the savings to their employees as part of their medical bonus.

Aanchal Bhatia is the President and Chief Clinical Psychologist of Texas Medical Concierge, a global company based in India and Texas that provides medical concierge and telemedicine lounge services. These services allow clients to have access to the worlds leading doctors for any type of healthcare need.

After undergoing conventional therapy for MS for several years, Fort Worth police sergeant Preston Walker learned about a new treatment for autoimmune disorders. Researchers were utilizing adult stem cells derived from cord blood at The Institute of Cellular Medicine in Costa Rica. Walker inquired about the potential of the treatment for multiple sclerosis. He knew that if the treatment worked, the potential benefits for multiple sclerosis patients could be limitless.

The CEO of Sky Medicus, Amy Holcomb discusses the large variety of healthcare options  her company provides globally. Amy actually got started when she became a medical tourist herself to overcome back pain she was having after going on vacation with her family. From Cancer treatment to cosmetic dental implants to orthopedic surgeries and much more, they have Doctors and medical facilities that can handle your issue. We were particularly impressed with the amount of background checks and due diligence they perform on behalf of their clients.

Ralph Weber is based in Houston and is the Founder and CEO of Medibid.com. Medibid caters to patients globally wherein they provide quality health care with transparency in pricing and quality. They allow patients to compare quality and price from the doctors that bid on their services  and therefore helping them come up with an informed decision. This breakthrough system in the health care aspect basically aids patients to save a huge percentage on health care costs especially if you are paying out of pockets or the procedure you need is not covered by your insurance. Find out more of this story and how this new system can help anyone shop for medical care without compromising affordability and quality.