Medical tourist is understood by us as foreign patients who is visiting other country with the aim to use medical treatment. It can be considered as an additional income source by means of privately paying patients, even though in some instances the costs can be covered by insurance companies in the country of origin. (This is possible, if the social security systems are sufficiently coordinated with regard to directive orders and regulations.) Generally, medical tourism means “travelling abroad with the intent to make use of medical treatment for the purpose of preserving life, enhancing the quality of life or improving one’s appearance; because of lower cost, better quality or the inaccessibility of some procedure at the place of residence (resulting from a lack of personnel, knowledge, technical equipment and procedures, or long waiting times or legal limitations) often combined with sightseeing the visited place”

The advantages of this kind of tourism affect not only medical clinics, but also many other service companies in the region. This is because the patients are likely to use many other services, not only medical ones. The selection and intensity depends on the health situation of the patient. For private clinics and hospitals medical tourism can be regarded as a new option of development. Well-functioning medical clinics are also one of the elements needed to build a “health region”, which is then also a useful tool to increase the competitiveness of the whole region.