Push factors, risks, and types of visit intentions of international medical travelers – A conceptual model

Literature available have already discussed in detail about motivations and perceived risks of international medical travelers in terms to their decision making, however, literature largely failed to discuss differences in motivations and the perceived risks of international medical travelers’ based on their countries of origin. Literature in leisure travel has already explained the influence of country of origin on motivation and perceived risk of travelers and their influence on visit intentions. The aim of the research study was to extensively review the literature and find out the differences in motivations and perceived risks among international medical travelers belong to developed regions and less developed regions of the world. The study also aimed to find out that in the context of categorization of intentions in psychology literature what type of intentions international patients may acquire based on the socio-economic conditions of their countries. Findings of rigorous literature review revealed that medical travelers from different regions show differences in their motivations and perceived risks. It is also revealed that due to not restricted to any condition patients from developed regions acquire ‘pure unconditional intentions', whereas influenced by the restrictive condition which they cannot control, patients from less developed regions of the world acquire ‘restrictive conditional intentions’.