Key points

  • Ask about the specific team and the specific treatment, not only the hospital's reputation.
  • Ask for the plan and the estimate in writing, and what could change them.
  • Ask practical questions about attendants, stay and follow-up before you travel.

Hospital websites tend to describe the hospital. What a family needs to know is narrower: who will treat this patient, what exactly they propose, what it will involve, and what happens afterwards. These questions help get those answers. Hospitals’ international and patient-relations desks are usually able to answer most of them.

About the clinical team

  • Which consultant will be responsible for the patient’s care?
  • How often does this team treat this condition, or perform this procedure?
  • Who will look after the patient when the consultant is not available?
  • Will other specialists be involved, and will the case be discussed by a team?

About the plan

  • What is the proposed treatment, and what are the alternatives?
  • Do you need any tests repeated after arrival, and why?
  • How long is the patient likely to be in hospital, and then nearby before travelling home?
  • What would make the plan change?

About costs

  • Can we have the estimate in writing, with what is included and excluded?
  • How much deposit is needed on admission?
  • What happens if the stay is longer, or complications occur?

Read understanding hospital treatment estimates before you compare estimates from different hospitals.

About the stay

  • How many attendants can stay with the patient, and where?
  • What facilities are available for families?
  • Is there accommodation nearby that families commonly use?

The guides on where to stay near the hospital and attendants cover this in more detail.

About after discharge

  • What follow-up will be needed, and can any of it happen in our home city?
  • Will you send a discharge summary to our local doctor?
  • Who do we contact if there is a problem after we return home?

Comparing hospitals fairly

Two estimates are only comparable if they describe the same treatment, the same room category and the same expected stay. When we present options to families, we set out what each hospital has said side by side, and mark what is confirmed and what is estimated. The choice remains yours. See treatment in another Indian city.