Treatment in Turkey: from choosing a clinic to the documents

Why Turkey, and when not

Turkey's advantage is a combination of three factors rarely found together elsewhere: a two-to-three-hour flight, a large number of big private clinics of international standard, and prices noticeably below European levels in fields such as oncology, transplantation, cardiac surgery, orthopaedics and reproductive medicine. Turkey is among the countries with the most JCI-accredited hospitals.

Turkey is not the best choice in every case. For a rare diagnosis, unclear diagnostics, complex neurosurgery, or when a particular professor or method is available in only one country, Germany or Israel may be the better option, even if more expensive. We start choosing the country from the diagnosis, not the price: we discuss this in detail on the treatment abroad page.

How to check a clinic by answering five questions

A clinic's website and social media are not a basis for choosing it. Here is what to ask the international patients department in writing:

1. Does the clinic hold international accreditation (JCI or equivalent), and since what year? The accreditation can be verified on the JCI website.
2. How many patients with your diagnosis were treated last year, and which doctor heads this field? A general "we treat everything" is not enough.
3. Who will see you in person: the professor who draws up the plan, or an assistant? The professor's fee is often listed separately in the cost estimate.
4. Does the clinic have a Russian-speaking or Georgian-speaking coordinator, and is their service included in the price? If not, you will need a separate interpreter.
5. Will the clinic issue a written treatment plan and cost estimate before you arrive? If the answer is "come over and we will tell you on site", this is not your clinic.

University or private clinic

University hospitals are strong in complex and rare cases, but their service for international patients is slow and communication is formal. Large private networks respond faster, give more transparent cost estimates and handle patient logistics better. For standard oncology, cardiology and orthopaedic cases, a private network is often the practical choice.

The document package the clinic expects

• Discharge summary or Form 100 from the most recent hospital stay, with the diagnosis, the treatment given and current prescriptions.
• Laboratory test results from the last 1-3 months, with units and reference ranges.
• Radiology reports as text, and the images themselves in DICOM format on a disc or via a link. Turkish clinics have their own radiologist review them, so without the images the plan will not be complete.
• Histology report and, if possible, the tissue blocks for an oncological diagnosis. Some clinics ask for a repeat histology.

The clinic's doctor will read documents only in English or Turkish. To get a cost estimate, an ordinary uncertified translation is enough; notarisation is needed when the document goes to an insurance company, a fund or an embassy for a visa. Which option you need and what it costs is explained on the medical translation page.

The cost estimate: what the figure means and what it leaves out

A Turkish clinic's cost estimate is usually a "package" price: the operation, anaesthesia, a set number of inpatient days and standard tests. The rest of the cost is often outside the package. Ask in writing:

• how many inpatient and intensive care days are included, and what an extra day costs;
• whether implants, stents, prostheses and expensive medicines (chemotherapy drugs, biological therapy) are included;
• what happens if there are complications: who pays for a repeat procedure or a longer hospital stay;
• whether a bed for the accompanying person, transfers and an interpreter are included;
• what deposit is paid before arrival, and how it is refunded if the plan changes.

If you are asking a Georgian state programme to cover part of the treatment cost, you will need the cost estimate translated into Georgian and certified, item by item. What the commission requires in such a case is described on the funding and legal consultation page.

Travel: what to prepare before the flight

• Document for the border: Georgian citizens enter Turkey visa-free, with a passport or ID card. For long treatment, check the permitted length of stay in advance, as the rules change.
• Flight: there are daily flights from Tbilisi, Batumi and Kutaisi to Istanbul and Ankara. Buy the ticket after the clinic has confirmed the date, with a flexible return date.
• Accommodation: within walking distance of the clinic, with a kitchen if treatment will last weeks. Some clinics have their own hotel or partner apartments at a discount.
• Money: clinics accept cards and bank transfers; for day-to-day spending, take local currency from a cash machine. Tell your bank in advance that you will be using your card abroad.
• Connectivity: a local SIM card at the airport, so you do not lose contact with the coordinator and your family.
• Medicines: your current medicines in their original packaging, with a translation of the prescription, so no questions arise at customs or at the clinic.

On site: what happens on the first day and after

The first day is usually repeat tests: blood work, imaging and a consultation with the professor. The clinic trusts its own data, and this is included in the price. At the consultation you should have someone with you who will convey exactly what the doctor says and ask your questions: this can be the clinic's coordinator or your own interpreter. Read every consent form you sign in translation beforehand. Keep every document the clinic gives you (tests, invoices, receipts) in one folder: when you return, that folder is your medical history.

After you return: discharge summary, medicines, follow-up

On discharge, the clinic gives you the discharge summary in Turkish or English. A Georgian doctor will read it in Georgian, and a pharmacy will not recognise prescriptions by brand name, because Turkish brands are sold in Georgia under different names or not at all. So as soon as you return, the discharge summary and prescriptions are translated into Georgian, with the international names of the drugs. Follow-up visits are often done remotely: the results of new tests are translated and sent to the clinic. If you need special care at home, equipment or a drug not available in Georgia, we arrange this on the post-operative care page.

Signs that should stop you

• The clinic or intermediary promises you a result ("100% cure", "guaranteed"). There are no guarantees in medicine, and such a promise is a sign of fraud.
• The cost estimate is verbal or arrives as a single figure in a messenger app, without letterhead or bank details.
• You are told that there is no need to send documents and they will see everything on site. This means the plan and the price will change after you arrive.
• The intermediary will not tell you the clinic's name until you pay.
• They ask for the full amount in advance instead of a deposit, or for payment in cash.