Colombia’s coastal city of Cartagena has been preparing to become a center for health tourism and hosted a “Medical Tourism” seminar Tuesday at Casa del Marques in the city’s Centro.
The Medical Tourism seminar was held from 8AM to 6PM by the National Educational Learning Service (SENA). The agenda of the seminar is to address some of the emerging development issues in the field of health and medical tourism, including defining occupational profiles related to the field, which SENA seeks to develop and strengthen.
The presentation will feature six speakers on tourism including the manager of Health Tourism from the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Tourism, Mateo Jaramillo, and specialists in the field, Maricel Castellano and Edwin Rojas from SENA Bogota.
Several hundred people are expected to attend, representing tourism and hospitality giants such as Cotelco, Asotelca, Corporacion de Turismo, Chamber of Commerce, Fenalco Acondres, and Anato.
Proexport, the company in charge of the promotion of Colombian export products and tourism, defines the emerging sector as an activity in which “today, many people in the world travel to their place of origin in other countries to undergo medical treatment and at the same time get to know the tourist attractions in the nation.”
Due to ease of travel, low costs of care, familiarity of modern surroundings, and overall affluence, Cartagena is emerging as a medical tourism destination for North America.