In Türkiye’s health tourism, healthcare services were provided to 302 thousand 487 international patients in the first quarter of this year, and an income of 761.5 million dollars was generated.
Turkey, which hosts health tourists from many countries, especially Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans, Turkish republics and North Africa, has become one of the preferred destinations of international patients with the services it offers in different medical fields, especially aesthetic and plastic surgery, hair transplantation, dental treatments, ophthalmology, orthopedics and traumatology, cardiology and oncology.
Mustafa Eröğüt, Member of the Board of Directors of the Service Exporters Association (HIB) and Chairman of the Health Services Committee, stated to the AA correspondent that Türkiye has exhibited a stable growth performance in health tourism in recent years, and said, “While the number of people visiting our country to receive health services in 2025 reached 1 million 398 thousand 580, the income from health tourism was 3 billion 22 million 452 thousand dollars.” he said.
Stating that the positive momentum continued in the first quarter of this year, Eröğüt said, “While 302 thousand 487 international patients received health services in our country in the first three months of the year, health tourism income reached 761 million 523 thousand dollars. Especially the increase in health tourism income per capita by approximately 39 percent compared to the same period of the previous year shows that our country has now become a health tourism destination that not only hosts more patients but also produces higher added value.” he said.
Eröğüt emphasized that they attach great importance to quality-oriented growth as well as quantity in health tourism, and stated that the strong increase in per capita income compared to the same period of the previous year is a concrete indicator that the country’s high-tech health infrastructure, health institutions at international standards and expert human resources are more preferred on a global scale.
Stating that their expectations for the end of the year are positive, Eröğüt stated that they are determinedly continuing their work to support sustainable growth in health tourism.
“We have observed a remarkable increase in demand from Central Asian countries in recent years.”
Eröğüt stated that their goal is to further increase Türkiye’s competitiveness in international health services, to increase the number of foreign patients and to increase the income from health service exports, and in this direction, he explained that they continue their promotion, branding and international cooperation activities to increase the contribution of health tourism to the country’s service exports.
Eröğüt stated that Türkiye provides services to a very wide geography thanks to its geographical location, strong health infrastructure and health services at international standards, and said:
“We host health tourists from approximately 180 countries, especially Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans, the Turkish republics and North Africa. Especially Germany, the United Kingdom, Iraq, Azerbaijan, the Russian Federation, Libya and the Gulf countries are among the markets that send the most patients to our country. In addition, we have observed a remarkable increase in the demand from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries in recent years. Our industry now aims not only to grow in existing markets but also to create a permanent presence in new markets. This “Although Sub-Saharan African countries, Gulf countries, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and North America have great potential in this context, we focus on strengthening Türkiye’s brand awareness in health tourism through promotional activities.”
Mustafa Eröğüt pointed out that one of Türkiye’s most important advantages in health tourism is its ability to provide world-class health services in many different branches, and said, “Aesthetic and plastic surgery, hair transplantation, dental treatments, ophthalmology, orthopedics and traumatology, cardiology, oncology, in vitro fertilization treatments and obesity surgery are among the areas that international patients are most interested in. While aesthetic surgery, hair transplantation and dental treatments constitute a significant part of health tourism revenues, oncology, cardiovascular surgery “Türkiye’s international patient attraction in areas that require advanced expertise, such as organ transplantation and transplantation, is increasing every year.” he said.
Stating that Türkiye is one of the world’s leading health destinations, offering health tourism services in more than 40 cities, with more than 1500 health institutions and hundreds of internationally accredited centers, Eröğüt stated that the main reasons why international patients prefer are high clinical success rates, advanced technology infrastructure, experienced physician staff and cost advantages ranging from 40 percent to 70 percent compared to Europe.
“The average health expenditure per person reached approximately 2,500 dollars.”
Eröğüt stated that in health tourism, they now care not only about the increase in the number of patients, but also about the added value obtained per person, and said:
“The average health expenditure per capita has reached approximately 2,500 dollars. However, we see that this figure can vary between 10 thousand dollars and 50 thousand dollars, especially in oncology, cardiovascular surgery, robotic surgery, organ transplantation and complex treatment processes. This shows that Türkiye has reached a strong position on a global scale not only in high-volume but also in high value-added health services. Our goal in the coming period is to further improve the international patient experience, focus on treatments that require high technology and strengthen the Turkish brand. “To sustainably increase both the number of patients and the income per capita.”
Stating that they aim to further strengthen the country’s global health tourism brand thanks to the work carried out in coordination with the Ministry of Commerce, HİB and sector stakeholders, Eröğüt said, “Heal in Turkey brand is the common showcase of our country in the field of international health services. In addition, the international promotion, fair participation, brand and Turquality supports provided by our Ministry of Commerce increase the international competitiveness of our sector. Our aim is to further strengthen Türkiye’s position as a global brand that stands out not only with its price advantage in health tourism but also with its reliability, quality, advanced technology and patient satisfaction.” he said.
Eröğüt pointed out that it is of great importance to effectively combat unregistered activities in order for Türkiye to maintain its strong reputation in the international arena, and said that the Heal in Turkey platform ensures that international patients can safely reach authorized healthcare institutions and intermediary organizations.
Stating that Türkiye is among the leading countries in the world with the number of healthcare institutions with Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation, Eröğüt stated that the spread of international accreditations, especially JCI, supports the continuous improvement of patient safety, clinical quality and service standards, while also strengthening the country’s brand value and international competitiveness in health tourism.
Eröğüt advised international patients to make sure that the healthcare institution or intermediary institution they choose is authorized, to secure all services related to the treatment process with a written contract, and to avoid unregistered intermediaries that provide services only through social media.
