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Czech Medical Spa Stays Can Help Reduce Pressure on the NHS

The “Medical Spa Partners” initiative introduces to the benefits of rapid reconvalescence at Czech spas to the British doctors and patients
 

‘Czech Medical Spas can help reduce pressure on the overloaded NHS and give good outcomes to its patients’. With this motto, the Embassy of the Czech Republic in London, in cooperation with CzechTourism, hosted on 20 November 2019 a Conference on the Medical Spa Sector with presentations by medical professionals and leading Czech spas, which are involved in the “Medical Spa Partners” initiative.

Through this initiative, Czech doctors working in the United Kingdom are aiming to present to their British colleagues, and their patients, the benefits of how rapidly convalescence can take place after a stay in a Czech spa. To date, the concept of the medical spa for recovery from surgery or illness or even a sports injury is practically unknown to the British public or many medical professionals. It is as yet not one of those things associated with the Czech Republic by the British people.

Ambassador Libor Sečka, in his opening remarks, recalled that stays in Czech spas have been naturally healing the human body and soul for centuries and many famous personalities have successfully benefited from treatments. Historical figures such as Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and, Frederyk Chopin as well as King Edward VII, to the inventor Thomas Edison and writer Mark Twain. More recent celebrities who have visited for treatments include Jude Law, Antonio Banderas, Rene Zellweger and, Robert De Niro among others.  

During the conference, two Czech doctors working in Britain, Dr. Jitka Vanderpol MD FRCP MBA and Dr. David Choluj MD and, MUDr. Josef Pešl from the Czech Republic presented the health benefits of convalescence and treatment in a Czech spa from a medical point of view and described the latest trends, for example, in rehabilitation and physiotherapy.

Currently, a basic spa stay can cost from as little as 70 GBP per day, including medical treatments, accommodation and meals. A convalescence stay in a spa can significantly accelerate the recovery of patients, eg. after surgery, to normal life and significantly reduce the overall cost of long-term treatment on the NHS or privately. In combination with extensive air connections between Britain and the Czech Republic (regular flights not only on the London – Prague route, but also from Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow and other UK cities to Prague and regional centers such as Brno, Ostrava and Pardubice), make Czech spas a significantly competitive destination in terms of health tourism. Under certain conditions, British patients may also be entitled to treatment in other EU countries covered by the British NHS system (to Brexit) under the so-called NHS-S2 scheme.

Representatives of the below participating spas from the Czech Republic introduced their specific areas of expertise to the conference guests during the evening:

Ensana

Imperial Karlovy Vary

Lázně Bělohrad

Spa Teplice

Royal Spa


 
Aleš Opatrný, Head of the Economic and Commercial Section of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in London

 

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