With its low cost advantage and emergence of several private players, it represents the fastest growing market, predicts "Asian Medical Tourism Analysis (2008-2012)," prepared by Research and Markets, an Irish firm.

Actually there is nothing strikingly new about the finding, experts say. India was touted as the global destination for health by the federal government back in 2003 itself.

Since then growing liberalization and entry of more and more private players, has meant that despite setbacks elsewhere in recent years, future seems sound for the health tourism sector.

The West is suffering by its own success. Public health expenditure is going through the roof. As the population ages and demands on healthcare increases, governments find it difficult to sustain the level of healthcare provided to citizens all along.

Besides, most developed countries are plagued by an acute shortage of medical personnel, of every category. To make matters worse, western economies are either turning stagnant or are declining. Consequently long waiting times are becoming an inevitable feature of the health scene, in Europe, particularly.

It is such challenges faced by the West that come as a boon for countries like India. According to the Research and Markets referred to earlier, India, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines could make the most of the difficult health scenario in the developed world.

The medical tourism market in India was estimated at $333 million in 2004. It is projected to reach $2.2 billion by 2012-14.

However, perceptions abroad over hygiene consciousness as also infrastructural constraints could spoil the party, it is feared.

The bulk of patients coming to India are from the SAARC region, from the Middle East, and Africa, though there is potential for exports to the West.

Chennai, capital of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is certainly in the forefront of health tourism.

Understandably so, for it was the Chennai-based Apollo Group that played a pioneering role in wooing foreign patients on the one hand and upgrading its own facilities on the other.

The time is not far off when we will be the Asian hub says Shamik Banerjee, Head of Corporate Communication, Apollo Group. The bustling metro boasts of a host of multi-specialty hospitals, he points out.

The group itself receives about 25,000 international patients every year, of which more than 3,000 come as medical tourists. Patients come from countries like Bangladesh, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Seychelles, Mauritius and Gulf countries.

The hospital has also tied up with over 10 international insurance companies and has its own health insurance company – Apollo DKV and has third party administrators (TPAs) abroad. In Japan, it has tied up with SOS International and Japan’s Emergency Assistance to airlift sick patients and bring them to India for treatment. In Oman and Mauritius, Apollo has tie-ups with the Health Ministries.

Dr S Nirmala, who runs a maternity centre, says, Apollo Hospitals, MIOT Hospitals, Madras Medical Mission, Sankara Nethralaya, Sri Ramachandra University Hospital and Vijaya Hospital were the first to encourage this trend. Soon, other hospitals followed suit by tying up with travel agencies and organizing a network of home-stays.