Healthbase Facilitates Medical Tourism Spine Fusion Surgery for Uninsured American in India

USA (SANEPR.com) May 28, 2009 -- Unable to seek care in the United States due to financial and insurance limitations, uninsured American finally found relief from his 20-year old chronic back pain in India through a lumbar spine surgery facilitated by Healthbase.
Boston-based Healthbase Online Inc., the leading medical tourism facilitator, recently helped an uninsured American have his two-decade old back problem addressed in India. Arranged by Healthbase, Marc Dwelis from Denver, Colorado received a spine fusion surgery in New Delhi, India.
Marc says, "I am at 8 weeks post surgery now and have been sleeping in a bed. I had slept sitting up in a chair for nearly 2 years before the surgery."
Marc suffered from a fractured spine for which he followed conservative and aggressive treatments for over 20 years that even included a discectomy (or diskectomy) of L5-S1 but none of the treatments provided relief from the chronic back pain. So, his local doctors recommended an experimental disc replacement operation along with an expensive disco-gram test but due to his financial and insurance limitations Marc was unable to seek treatment in Denver.
His options suddenly widened when he learnt about medical tourism and Healthbase. Healthbase quickly connected him with its network of spine specialists, guided him to choose one of the best spine surgeons in the world, assisted him in sending his digital reports, helped him obtain a personalized quote and arranged for a conference call with the doctor - all at no cost.
Upon consultation with his highly qualified Indian surgeon he discovered spine fusion surgery to be the best option for him because of instability in the affected area of his spine caused by the fracture. In a spine surgery one or more of the vertebrae (bones that make up the spinal column) of the spine are united or fused together using bone grafts to stop motion at the painful joint. Spine fusion surgery is commonly used to treat a fractured or broken vertebra (e.g. spondylolisthesis), deformity (e.g. scoliosis or kyphosis), pain from painful motion, instability, some cervical disc herniations, weak or unstable spine caused by infections or tumors, etc.
Marc adds, "I can honestly say I am nearly 100% and will be the rest of the way very soon. My only regret is not knowing about this option 10 years ago. Healthbase made this miracle of healing possible. Healthbase was there for every question, concern and kindness. I am preparing to go abroad again for a procedure my wife needs and am supremely confident that Healthbase will see this to a successful conclusion as well."
Marc's surgery in India cost him 70% of what his local hospital in Denver had quoted him. He adds, "Unbelievable! I even received a refund for over payment when I returned."
According to Saroja Mohanasundaram, CEO of Healthbase, "Uninsured patients like Marc form a big segment of our current customer base who seek affordable health care options overseas for not just spine surgery but all sorts of other surgeries including hip surgery, knee surgery, heart surgery, dental procedures and others. Patients from countries like Canada also find our services useful for its fast and easy accessibility which involves virtually zero waiting times. Medical tourism, with its ultimate financial benefits, is now grabbing the attention of employers and insurers as well. Our collaboration with the nation's largest health benefits company demonstrates this fact."
Healthbase has the largest network of medical tourism destinations and providers present both domestically (in the US) and internationally (outside of the US). Healthbase connects patients with internationally accredited hospitals in India, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, New Zealand, Turkey, Hungary, Belgium, Spain, Costa Rica, Panama, Brazil, Mexico, and USA. Healthbase expects soon to expand its services to include Taiwan, Jordan, South Africa, Canada, UK, Poland, Czech Republic, Argentina, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Australia.

About Healthbase
Healthbase, an award-winning US-based medical tourism and dental tourism facilitator, is a one-stop source for global medical and dental choices, connecting patients to leading internationally accredited healthcare providers in 16 countries including India, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, Panama, Costa Rica, Mexico and USA. Healthbase caters to individual consumers, self-funded businesses, insurers, benefits plan consultants, third party administrators and those using Consumer Directed Healthcare Plans (CDHPs) or voluntary benefit plans. Healthbase coordinates over 200 procedures in various categories like orthopedic, spinal, cardiac, bariatric, urology, oncology, dental, cosmetic and general surgery. Some of the common procedures offered are Birmingham hip resurfacing, total hip replacement, knee replacement, ACL repair, rotator cuff surgery, spinal fusion, spinal disk replacement, heart bypass surgery, lap band, gastric bypass, cancer treatment, liposuction, dental implants, crowns, bridges, etc. for a fraction of the cost in the US with equal or superior outcomes. To ensure that patients receive the best care possible, Healthbase works mainly with hospitals that have international accreditations like JCI, JCAHO and ISO. To learn more, call 1-888-691-4584, email info.hb@healthbase.com or visit http://www.healthbase.com.