Gillian Maynard, a travel executive from London, was so fed up with the hassle of glasses and contact lenses that she had been fantasising for three years about laser eye surgery, but the cost of private care in the UK made her think twice.

After much research, first on the internet, then by quizzing former patients and finally questioning hospitals, she decided to have her eyes corrected in Turkey, where she often works over the summer.

“It came down to a choice between Turkey and the UK. Cost was, of course, a factor but I also wanted to make sure that the treatment was going to be successful,” says Maynard, 43. “The more people I spoke to, the more comforted I felt about it.”

In Turkey the cost of an operation to correct both eyes was around £500, she says. In the UK, she would have paid two or three times as much. The fact that health tourism is increasingly popular helped to reassure her about her choice. “When I went to the airport in London, it turned out that the girl at the check-in desk had had her breasts lifted in Morocco and another woman in the queue was going abroad for a tummy tuck; everyone is doing it.”

Maynard is certain that the Dünya Göz hospital in Istanbul, which has a high rate of operations, was on a par medically with what she would have received at home. However, she was initially flustered that the hospital, a keen provider of health tourism with 500 foreign patients each month, had such a busy reception area and a conveyor-belt feel to the treatment. She advises that reading up on the operation is a must, because nobody has time to explain things to you as you go along — even though you are assigned a translator at reception.

“In every room you are one of four people all having tests one after the other — as soon as one patient gets up their seat is immediately filled by the next in line. You have to give up the idea of special treatment. In the UK it would probably have been a more personal thing,” she says. “But I expect that’s where the cost-cutting comes in. I had the tests and then went off to surgery straight away, then I was given my own room to lie down and recover for about half an hour.”

The idea of going abroad for some sun and a bit of cheap surgery might sound enticing, but Maynard advises that it should not be entered into lightly: “When I had the tests my eyes registered at minus five; for someone of my level of short-sightedness this operation is of great benefit. But it is an operation and can be uncomfortable. I would not do it for reasons of vanity or convenience.”

Health tourists should also beware of thinking of the surgery as just another component of a busy holiday schedule, she adds. There is much discomfort after the operation — dehydration, scratchiness and redness and pain similar to the feeling of having had contact lenses in too long. So the surgery should be undertaken after you have had your fill of the sights, not as soon as you arrive.

“After the operation it’s best just to take yourself away and sleep for a bit. But I did go and see the Picasso exhibition in Istanbul the day after. I had to keep putting drops in my eyes but it was a good way to celebrate.”

Since her operation in February, Maynard’s eyesight has improved enormously and she has no regrets. “It took a while, but now it’s great,” she says. “To be able to go for a pee in the night and see where you are going — fabulous.”
SUNA ERDEM


Treatment Laser eye surgery.
Cost of treatment £500 (eye tests, surgery and aftercare) but treatments range from £40 for an eye test to £650 for some types of surgery. A three-night package, including eye treatment and a four-day stay in a four-star hotel, costs £1,005.
Additional costs A return flight from London to Istanbul costs around £250. A mid-range hotel costs £60 to £150 a night.
Cost if done privately in UK £1,500.
Waiting time 15 to 20 days if you take the package; 10 to 15 days if you make an appointment and make your own travel arrangements.
Quality of treatment Good.
Quality of post-treatment support Good.
Contact Call centre on 0090 212 444 4469.

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