A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF PUBLICLY REPORTED MEDICAL TOURISM DATA IN PUBLIC CITY HOSPITALS IN TÜRKİYE

Medical tourism is a growing strategic field globally, and within this scope, medical tourism involves the international mobility of patients for advanced diagnostic and treatment services. Although Türkiye is a significant destination for medical tourism due to its healthcare infrastructure and public city hospitals, it has occasionally been portrayed critically in international media, focusing on patient safety and complications. This study evaluates international patients treated within the scope of medical tourism in public city hospitals in Türkiye. It is a cross-sectional and descriptive study that examines publicly available medical tourism data from the websites of public city hospitals using a purposive sampling method. The study demonstrates that city hospitals have high bed, operating room, and intensive care capacity; and that successful and effective treatments are offered to international patients in internal medicine and surgical branches. Clinical improvement, functional gain, and disease control have been observed in complex and advanced cases. Public city hospitals, with their advanced infrastructure, multidisciplinary approaches, and qualified healthcare workforce, are reliable centers supporting Türkiye's competitiveness in medical tourism. This study offers a complementary contribution based on clinical data, countering the limited and mostly negative framing in the literature regarding Türkiye's medical tourism performance.