Health screenings are emerging as another draw for foreign visitors to South Korea, with a growing number choosing the country for medical checkups, data showed Sunday.
A total of 65,228 foreign patients underwent health screenings in Korea last year, up 17 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
The upward trend appears to be continuing this year.
The Korea Medical Institute said the number of foreign patients undergoing health screenings at its centers rose about 44 percent between January and November compared with the same period last year.
"A large proportion of our foreign patients come from North America, particularly the United States and Canada. We are also seeing growing numbers from China, Mongolia and countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States," a KMI official told a local news outlet. The CIS is an organization of states that consists of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
The official attributed the increase to the quality of medical examinations, the convenience of undergoing multiple tests at a single location, quick turnaround times for results and language support.
Demand for health screenings is expected to grow alongside a surge in inbound tourism.
The number of foreign tourists visiting South Korea surpassed 20 million on Thursday for the first time, 14 years after reaching the 10 million milestone in 2012, according to data from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
cjh@heraldcorp.com
