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Africa's middle class women bring entrepreneurial opportunities in breast care medical tourism to South Africa
Author(s) -
AhwirengObeng Frederick,
van Loggerenberg Charl
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
the international journal of health planning and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1099-1751
pISSN - 0749-6753
DOI - 10.1002/hpm.1034
Subject(s) - middle class , medical tourism , excellence , poverty , economic growth , tourism , interview , distribution (mathematics) , business , health care , political science , geography , medicine , socioeconomics , sociology , economics , mathematical analysis , mathematics , law
Africa's distribution of specialized private health services is severely disproportionate. Mismatch between South Africa's excess supply and a huge demand potential in an under‐serviced continent represents an entrepreneurial opportunity to attract patients to South Africa for treatment and recuperative holidays. However, effective demand for intra‐African medical tourism could be constrained by sub‐Saharan poverty. Results from interviewing 320 patients and five staff at the Johannesburg Breast care Centre of Excellence, however, reject this proposition, Africa's middle class women being the target market estimated to grow annually by one million while breast cancer incidence increases with middle‐class lifestyles. Uncovering this potential involves an extensive marketing strategy. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.