Medical tourists spent $270m in Dubai during 2022: DHA

Dubai, UAE — As many as 674,000 medical tourists visited Dubai in 2022 and spent AED992 million ($270m), marking an increase of AED262 million ($71.34m) from 2021, a report by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) said. The report said 39 percent percent of the medical tourists were from Asian countries, 22 percent from Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States and 21 percent from Arab and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Awadh Seghayer Al Ketbi, Director-General of the DHA, said Dubai’s ability to provide high-quality patient-centered medical care has accelerated its growth as an Arab, regional and international healthcare destination. Dubai’s strategic location, safety, exceptional infrastructure and world-leading amenities add to the factors that have raised its status as a medical tourism hub, he noted. The three specialities that saw the highest number of medical tourists were dermatology (31 percent) dentistry (24 percent) and gynecology (18 percent). The tourists visited Dubai for treatment in the fields of orthopaedics, plastic surgery, ophthalmology, fertility treatments, hospitalization and recovery. Al Ketbi further said Dubai’s vision is to provide a world-class healthcare model and an integrated medical care system that offers cutting-edge facilities, advanced technologies, smart solutions and state-of-the-art treatment methods. Highly-qualified professionals across all fields of medicine drove its global competitiveness in the sector, he added. Noting that healthcare plays a key role in enhancing people’s quality of life, Al Ketbi said the DHA has adopted a clear strategy to expand the role of this vital sector in raising the welfare of the community.