Also referred to as Heart surgery, Cardiac surgery involves surgeries performed on the heart to rehabilitate life-threatening conditions. This field looks into diagnosis and treatments of various kinds of heart disorders such as Heart failure, Congenital heart defects, Coronary Artery disease, Electrophysiology and Valvular heart disease. Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs) are the number one cause of death globally; more people die annually from CVDs than from any other cause. The World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated 17.7 million people died from CVDs in 2015, representing 31 percent of all global deaths, a number that is expected to grow to more than 23.6 million by 2030.

In the past few years, medical science has progressed in leaps and bounds, making even the most complex cardiac surgeries much safer while minimizing the risks. The surgery can be either open-heart surgery or minimally invasive surgery depending on the situation and the condition of the patient.

Some of the cardiac issues are:

• Coronary Artery Disease
• Enlarged Heart (Cardiomegaly)
• Heart Attack
• Irregular Heart Rhythm
• Atrial Fibrillation
• Congenital Heart Disease
• Pericarditis
• Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

The medical practitioner who specializes in such surgeries is called the Cardiothoracic surgeon.

Special Services to our Zambia Patients

Special and individualized care – We ensure fast and efficient services, which include immediate diagnostic and treatment procedures with no waiting lists. There is 24/7 staff for full patient support services, who are well trained to handle the most complex situations. Depending on the urgency, there are special consultations for scans, clinical investigations organized for Zambian medical tourists. Even if you are not insured, we ascertain that you are equally benefitted; and we don’t need any doctor’s referral to cater to you. We attend each and every Zambian with supreme care and patience.

Special packages – One thing that comes into consideration and is obviously very crucial while choosing a treatment destination, is the cost factor. We understand this and ensure that our patients are happy and supremely satisfied with the pricing of the treatments and procedures, they are looking for. We specially offer very cost effective packages for medical tourists from Zambia; customize the packages keeping in mind that patients are coming from all sections of the society.

Free second opinion – When it comes to illness and related procedures, certainly there can be some doubts in your mind; regarding the proficiency of the doctor or about the clinical investigation. So that you have no doubts regarding these factors and have full trust in us, we can arrange for free second opinion in our empanelled hospitals. This will surely help in clearing your dilemma and cement the trust in our relationship further.

Language Assistance – It is very important that the medical personnel are capable of handling this language issue, as health issues need to be communicated accurately and in a very detailed manner. So, we look after this issue by arranging expert translators/interpreters so that the requirements of our Zambian friends reach the doctor properly and vice versa.

Quick visa assistance – We make the visa process absolutely uncomplicated and hassle free. Our 24/7 visa assistance is at your disposal to look after all your queries and needs related to visa. We make it as simple as possible so that there is no time wastage, keeping in mind your health issues and the associated urgency.

Logistics Support – We are with you right from the moment you arrive at the airport. Our staff is there to receive the medical tourists at the airport, ensure that the guesthouse/hotel is perfect for the travelers. Further, we monitor your admission formalities and keep a detailed track your treatment process at the hospital – either in person or over phone – as and when required. Also, we provide regular medical updates about you to the sponsor of the treatment such as, the insurance agency, charity organization, your employer, etc.

Special food – Every health issue, its treatment and the suggested procedure comes along with its own dietary schedule and restrictions. We make sure that the food issues and such restrictions are well taken care of, ensuring your good health. We have special tie-ups with local food chains; customized diet plans are proffered keeping in mind speedy recovery and for better outcomes for the Zambian patients.

Follow up services – After any treatment/procedure, the most important phase is the follow up. Without this, the procedure is considered incomplete and can lead to a relapse. Follow up is important both for the patient as well as the doctor/surgeon. We ensure that there are no obstacles or interruptions in this phase and organize follow up services even after the patient is back in his own country, after his successful treatment in India.

Clinical camps – In order to create awareness about various health issues as well as to provide free and easily accessible services, clinical camps are organized in Zambia. There are doctors and assistant staff available in such camps to guide Zambians regarding many health issues and associated precautions.

Types of Cardiac surgeries:

• Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG)
• Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization
• Heart Valve Repair or Replacement
• Arrythmia Treatment
• Heart Transplant
• Open-heart Surgery
• Off-pump Heart Surgery
• Open Heart Surgery

Cardiac surgery: India a Boon for Medical Tourists

India has become the healthcare hub for international patients as it provides with the latest in medical treatment facilities and best services making it easy and comfortable. Indian Medical Association (IMA) says that in India, there are over 500 hospitals catering to open heart surgeries with over 100,000 surgeries being performed yearly. If your loved one has been advised a cardiac surgery, there are many crucial factors that you are bound to consider – highly trained surgeons, latest technology, supreme patient care along with the right kind of infrastructure. This makes India a hot spot for open heart surgery patients from Zambia. Cardiac surgeons in India are trained at the nationally and internationally acclaimed institutes and have years of experience in treating patients successfully from all over the world. Their expertise, know-how coupled with team approach and well-researched knowledge, enables them to deliver the best.

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Furthermore, the cost of Cardiac surgeries in India is much lower than that in any other developed country. International patients visit India for such procedure as they get it done at a cost which is competitive and reasonable. The Cardiological Society of India (CSI) empathizes that hospitals in India have the most advanced equipment that can aid in accurate diagnosis and comprehensive care of the patient during their surgeries in India. The cardiac surgeries performed in India are: Angioplasty, CABG, heart transplants, reparative surgery for Congenital heart defects, Pacemaker Implantation and Pediatric heart surgery and much more. Cardiac surgeons and hospitals in India are thus well-positioned to accommodate the Cardiac needs of patients from all over the world. Not only this, compared to many other leading countries, India offers an array of cardiac treatments, at affordable prices. Thus, for the global patients coming from Zambia, India indeed proves to be a boon.

Zambia needs more Cardiac expertise

In rural areas, the situation is even worse as patients walk several kilometres from their villages to the clinic and spend more hours waiting to be attended to. Some critically ill patients die on their way to the hospitals due to lack of proper roads and ambulances in rural areas. A recent revelation by the Zambia Medical Association (ZMA) says that Zambia is not in a position to handle various medical complications without having to refer them abroad. Especially, Zambia needs to work a lot on its Cardiac surgery arena and also to elevate the services provided for the same. Despite the fact that basic healthcare facilities are guaranteed in the constitution of Zambia, the actuality is a sad picture. According to the latest WHO data, CVDs in Zambia reached 3,546 or 2.61% of total deaths.

This, notwithstanding, analysts are saying that currently, Zambia has 1,500 doctors and has a shortage of 3,000 more. According to WHO, the normal doctor-patient ratio is 1 doctor per 5,000 patients but Zambia has one of the most abnormal doctor-patient ratio which now stands at 1 doctor per 12,000 patients. Due to ignorance, inadequate infrastructure, refusal of practitioners to accept postings in the rural areas and less amount of funds, Zambia faces biting shortage of medical staff. The best practitioners have emigrated and the remainder medical staff does not have sufficient medical facilities and qualifications to even provide the basic healthcare needs for the ailing population of the country.

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According to the Medical Journal of Zambia, many Cardiac patients cannot access and afford the treatment and die waiting for a miracle to happen. Some get appointments that are six months or one year away. So we can imagine how tricky it is for complex treatments such as cardiac surgeries. It is learnt that there are only a few facilities in Zambia that have the capacity to do Cardiac surgeries. Due to the country’s serious economic challenges, Zambia has fallen behind many other countries when it comes to heart surgeries. Thus, patients are forced to seek cardiac surgeries in other countries.

Cardiac surgery patients from Zambia to India

The growing burden of cardiac issues is a matter of big concern but it is not given the attention it deserves; and it is specifically happening in Zambia. The Cardiac surgery needs in Zambia has overshot its capacity and there is a lot of backlog. That’s the reason India has received several thousand medical value travelers from Zambia since 2010. With more than 500 cardiology hospitals in India that conduct the most progressive types of cardiac surgeries, India is surely in a leading position. Isn’t it a reason enough to choose India over many other countries? Patients from Zambia are bound to travel abroad for medical treatments for years now. Many travel to their neighboring African countries such as South Africa, Mozambique, etc.; some travel to countries as far away as India, Singapore, Dubai, etc.

The Cardiac surgeries remain one of the top four procedures for which globally located patients travel to India. One can estimate about 10 percent patients visit India for cardiac surgeries. The lower cost of healthcare in India compared to USA, UK and South Africa is the main facet that attracts Zambians to look at India with lot of hope for survival and betterment. The Medical Tourism Market Report reveals that heart surgery costs over US$ 43,000 in UK, US$ 70,000-130,000 in USA and about US$ 15,000 in South Africa; but just about US$ 7,000 in India. The report also reveals that the number of medical tourists coming to the country for medical purposes was 200,000 in 2016.

India is proudly and incessantly taking the market share away from South Africa and other countries, for medical value travel due to low price tag. For every ten medical tourists visiting India, one would undoubtedly be for Cardiac reasons. Hence, the Cardiac surgeons in India, hospitals, and medical value travel companies are working aggressively at capturing the share of medical value travel business from South Africa and other major countries. Cost is undeniably the key driver, but usage of latest medical technology, growing compliance on international quality standards, brand name and the deftness of the surgeons are the other key components.

With poverty and the fast mushrooming population being some of the major drawbacks of Zambia, the patients obviously are looking for pocket-friendly medical packages. That’s where India comes to their rescue. Despite of the reasonably priced treatments, the quality of service patients get is world-class and the waiting time is almost nil. No wonder, several hundred thousands of Zambians are flocking to India looking for better healthcare options. Cardiac surgeons in India, the hospitals and medical value travel providers should team up with the Ministry of Health and Child Care in Zambia to raise the number of Zambians visiting India for healthcare reasons, especially for cardiac procedures.

At any Given Point to Send Us a Medical Query :   click here   Phone Numbers Reach Us- India & International : +91-9370586696

About Indian Hospitals

India offers some of the best medical treatments in the world. The private hospitals in India have excellent reputation and our healthcare sector has sustained enormous boom in recent years. Despite the prejudices about healthcare in developing countries, rest assured that the cardiac surgery hospitals in India are at the forefront of medical technology and are well equipped with the modern state of the art technology and highly qualified and experienced cardiac surgeons. Indian doctors are considered the best in the world with the high level of surgical expertise that evolves from many years of training.

Hygiene in private hospitals in Indi is excellent and the Zambia patients seeking cardiac surgery are screened for HIV and Hbs Ag antibodies to prevent the transmission of communicable diseases and incidence of MRSA is minimal. The operation theatres have laminar air flow installed and gaining the ISO9001 standardisation, a voluntary standardisation run b a nongovernmental body where the hospitals must pass rigorous tests to be certified is increasingly becoming popular in the hospitals and the clinics.

Medical Visa Information for Patients from Zambia to India

• Visa applicants may apply at: httpss://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/. High Commission does not accept online payments for Visa, Passport and Consular services.
• The High Commission of India accepts visa applications including from Diplomatic/Official passport holders at the High Commission on working days between 0900 hrs to 1100 hrs.
• Visa fee is payable in CASH at the High Commission. Facility for payment by credit card/debit card is not available.
• Non-Zambian nationals, who are casual visitors and not normally resident in Zambia should apply for an Indian visa in the country of their residence or country of origin.
• For Business visas, invitation letters from the relevant Indian company and the recommendation letter from the Zambia Company are required.
• The validity of all visas is counted from the date of issue.
• Your passport must have a minimum validity of six months and two blank pages at the time of submission of visa application.
• The visa fee charged is non-refundable regardless of the outcome of the application or the applicant withdrawing the application after submission or if the visa cannot be processed within the timeframe desired by applicants.
• For visa-related queries, kindly drop an email at cons.lusaka@mea.gov.in.
• Online Submission of Visa Application Form
  • Visa applicants may apply at httpss://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/ and complete the application online after carefully going through the instructions listed on the web page.
  • Please take a print out of the duly filled online form and submit a signed copy directly at the High Commission.
  • Applications are to be submitted along with a recent passport-size colour photograph (size 2" x 2", white background), applicable visa fee and two clear pages in your passport. Take note of requirements of additional documentation for business or employment visas. All visa applications should be accompanied by copy of personal particular page of the passport and a copy of the EP/WP/NRC/SP.

In case of any difficulty and for clarifications regarding online submission of the visa application, please contact the Consular Officer at cons.lusaka@mea.gov.in

Visa invitation letter

When you are applying for a medical visa, a visa invitation letter is required. A visa invitation letter is a formal document that is sent to the patient from the Indian hospital that sanctions his/her medical treatment in that hospital in India.

This also serves the purpose of a proof that the patient has indeed contacted with Indian hospital and will be having his or her treatment there. The visa invitation letter consists of the patient details, details of his/her ailment, treatment procedure and duration of the treatment involved. Hence it is an important and mandatory document required during the application and for the sanction of a medical visa to the patient.

Embassy Information

Vaccination

Do I Need A Yellow Fever Vaccine for India?

If you are coming to India from a country where yellow fever is present you are required to show proof of immunization. The patients travelling from Zambia to India for getting their medical treatment should enclose a valid Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate that becomes valid only 10 days after the inoculation.

• Flight & Travel from Zambia to India
• Lusaka, ZA (LUN) to New Delhi, India (DEL)
• Livingstone, ZA (LVI) to Mumbai, IN (BOM)
• Mfuwe, ZA (MFU) to Chennai, IN (MAA)
• Ndola, ZA (NLA) to Bangalore, IN (BLR)

Common Flights to Zambia to India

At any Given Point to Send Us a Medical Query :   click here   Phone Numbers Reach Us- India & International : +91-9370586696