A US travel vlogger recently made a video in which she spoke about being “blown away by the affordability and quality of Indian healthcare”. Mackenzie, who is one half of the vlogging couple UNSTUK with Mac & Keen, shared in an Instagram video that during their trip in India, her boyfriend got “super sick”. The vlogger added that based on her familiarity with the healthcare system in the US and UK, she was expecting that Indian healthcare would be very expensive and time-consuming. However, her local Indian friend helped her book blood tests for her boyfriend in just minutes.
Mackenzie was first surprised when her friend told her the nurse would come to their house to take the blood sample and that they had the liberty of picking the time of the blood test. Additionally, the blood report would come the next day, and based on the results the doctor would prescribe the treatment. Mackenzie thought all of this would cost them a ton of money, but to her surprise, they only spent $14 ( ₹1,100 approximately) on blood tests and doctor’s consultations.
While sharing this “culture shock” anecdote in an Instagram video, she wrote, “I guess this is how India keeps 1.4 billion people alive!” Her video had footage of the nurse who arrived at their home to take the blood sample. The nurse was from a private medical diagnostic lab. This video has so far gathered over two lakh likes. The video also prompted a debate about whether the healthcare system is accessible to the majority of Indians or not.
An Instagram user commented, “I love India and for me London NHS was a cultural shock but later I realised it’s very superficial understanding of the entire situation. This facility we enjoy in India comes at the cost of poor exploitation where we run a parallel medical system according to who can afford what. While the NHS ensures that the lowest on the rung can access the same level of medical facilities.”
Someone else wrote, “I am saying this for the 100th time. India’s healthcare system is better than the US. We just need a bit of organizational skills and a few advanced technologies.”
Highlighting the “medical tourism” in India, an Instagram user remarked, “I mean people from all over the world do come here for cheap & efficient medical treatment. There’s medical tourism too.”
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