Nigerians Traveling to India for Medical treatment – Visa Requirements and Travel Tips to India

What makes the patients from Nigeria Travel to India for their surgery is the fact that India has one of the best qualified professionals in each and every field, and this fact has now been realized the world over. Regarding Medical Facilities India has the most competent doctors and world class Medical Facilities. With most competitive charges for treatment, India is a very lucrative destination for people wanting to undergo treatment of certain medical problems. India offers World Class Medical Facilities, comparable with any of the western countries. India has state of the art Hospitals and the best-qualified doctors. With the best infrastructure, the best possible Medical facilities, accompanied with the most competitive prices, you can get the treatment done in India at the lowest charges. 

Nigerian Citizens are very sensitive towards their health requirements. Since the medical infrastructure is not so highly developed in Nigeria, patients prefer to travel abroad for medical management. This has been the case in past also when only the rich and the affluent traveled to USA and Europe for healthcare. With India emerging as one of the Medical hubs of the world, just like patients from other countries, patients from Nigeria have also now started coming to India for all health and medical related issues.

General Visa Requirement for Nigerians

Please do not finalise your travel arrangements to India before ascertaining the visa requirements. All Nigerian nationals, including children, require a visa to enter India. All types of visa application forms can be obtained free of charge from the visa counter of the High Commission of India on any working day from 0900-1100 hrs.

• Return air ticket
• Yellow Fever Certificate
• Bank statement for last 3 months. The a/c statement should be certificate by the bank and must indicate the name of the officer, full address and telephone/fax numbers
• A separate letter giving full details of previous visits to India, including periods of stay
• Your CV/bio-data
• A separate letter which gives your present occupation and detailed purpose of your intended visit to India

In addition to everything in the General Visa Requirement for the Medical Visas, following documents are needed:

• Letter from the local hospital/doctor
• Complete copies of treatment record from the local hospital
• Letter from the Indian hospital which must also be mailed by the hospital authorities to High Commission at High Commission’s mail box
• Proof of relationship of accompanying the patient and a letter indicating relationship

Registration with the Foreigners Registration Office (FRO)/Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO)

Persons of Nigerian origin holding a Multiple Entry X-Visa, visiting India for Medical purpose or any other purpose, are required to register with the FRO/FRRO (Foreign Registration Office) within 14 days of first arrival only if they intend to stay continuously for more than 6 months. This registration is required during the first visit after the visa is issued. Subsequent travels using the same visa do not require registration. The person accompanying the patient will also be required to get himself or herself registered with the FRO/FRRO. It usually takes 2 – 3 days to confirm the registration. Following documents are required during your registration process;

• Your current Passport copy
• 4 Recent passport size photo of you 
•  Yellow fever card (important)

Contact Details of Indian Consulate-

• Indian Consulate in Lagos, Nigeria
  High Commission of India in Lagos, Nigeria     
  8-A, Walter Carrington Crescent
  P.M.B. 80128 Victoria Island
  City: Lagos
  Telephone: (234 1) 2627680, 2615078 & 2615905
  Fax: 2612660, 26136680
  
  Timings: Mon to Fri 8.30 AM to 5.00 PM
  Consular visitors' hours: Mon to Fri 9.00 AM to 11.00 AM
  Passports/ Visa collection hours: Mon to Fri 4.30 PM to 5.00 PM
  
  
•  Indian Consulate in Abuja, Nigeria
  High Commission of India in Abuja, Nigeria (Branch Office)    
  Plot No. 684 (A&B), Agdez Crescent
  Off Aminu Kano Crescent
  Wuse-II
  City: Abuja

Travel Tips

Her are some general guide and some important instructions for your safe and hassle-free journey to India for medical purpose. In your best interest, we would advise you to follow them sincerely.

BEFORE TRAVELLING FROM YOUR HOME COUNTRY

• Please make sure that you have all the contact information of the Concerned Person / Driver in India.
• Please start/stop taking the medication as has been advised to you by the doctor in India for your medical treatment.
• Please start the special diet if you have been advised for any kind of surgery at least 7 days before your planned arrival to India. 
• Please stop taking blood thinners (aspirin/warfarin) 7 days before the planned arrival to India.
• Please stop smoking 15 days prior to your planned arrival to India for the surgery.
• Please stop consumption of alcohol 7 days prior to your planned arrival to India for the surgery.

ON DEPARTING FROM THE HOSPITAL

• Please inform the Executives of your Medical Consultancy firm by phone at least 24 hours before your departure so that your driver can be sent on time. 
• If you are going to a Hotel/Trip-please inform about the same to Consultant so that a follow up can be kept on you during your post operative recovery
• Please keep the following phone numbers handy- Executive of your Consultancy firm and Your Attendant /Surgeon at the Hospital.
• Make sure that you have all your medical papers and discharge card of your surgery/treatment.

 

WHILE TOURING INDIA

• Please consume only bottled water. 
• Please do not talk and accept food from Strangers.
• Please only eat in good hotels and eat only properly cooked/boiled food. 
• Please limit the consumption of milk based products.
• Keep your passports close to you. 
• Do not give money to beggars.
• It is not a good idea to travel with too much cash. Travellers' cheques are best. 
• If travelling in the monsoon, carry a raincoat and umbrella.
• Label your entire luggage and even try to carry an extra set of labels with you.
• Make sure that you stay in clean and hygienic hotels.
• Make sure that your hotel room has mosquito repellant machine or cream.

HAVE A SAFE AND A HAPPY JOURNEY TO INDIA

Nigerian citizens flock to India for Cost effective Weight loss surgery

Medical tourism India has now become hugely popular for its Weight loss surgery all over the world. Forerunners Healthcare has been helping more and more men and women throughout Nigeria and other countries like U.K. and U.S.A to lose weight through Weight loss surgery in India. Carrying that extra pound can increase the risk of health problems including diabetes; heart disease; stroke; steoarthritis; high blood pressure; gallstones; infertility and depression. Weight loss surgery in India offers safe and effective means of helping you reach and maintain your target weight and allow you to enjoy a better quality of life by following a structured and supervised programme.

Losing weight is an individual challenge, different for every person and considering an operation is a big decision. Since no two bodies are alike, no two people receive the same treatment. Indian surgeons who undertake Weight loss surgery are aware that it is important to select patients who are most likely to benefit from it. They ensure that the patients only undergo the surgery if it is right for them by only selecting patients who fall under the following:

•  For gastric bypass surgery the patient must have a BMI of over 35. 
•  For lap band surgery, the BMI must be over 30.
• All patients must be aged 18 or over.
• Other methods of losing weight have been tried without success.
• There is no specific metabolic or psychological reason behind the patient's obesity
• The patient has sufficient knowledge and understanding of the Weight loss surgery and what changes it will produce.
• The patient is motivated to have the surgery and make the necessary post-operative lifestyle changes.

Types of Weight loss operation

Expert Indian bariatric surgeons offer a range of Weight Loss surgery procedures including gastric banding (gastric band), also known as lap banding, gastric bypass and gastic balloon insertion etc. They also offer sleeve gastrectomy and duodenal switch operations.

• Gastric Band:- A band fitted around the top of the stomach which severely restricts the amount of food you can eat.
• Gastric Bypass:- A line of staples separates the top part of the stomach to create a pouch which means food bypasses most of the stomach and small intestine.

• Stomach Stapling (Vertical banded gastroplasty):- An obsolete weight loss operation replaced by the gastric band.
•  Sleeve Gastrectomy:- An operation for weight loss which reduces the size of the stomach.
• Bilopancreatic Diversion:- This operation removes most of the stomach and attaches a small pouch left to the final part of the small intestine.
• Duodenal Switch:- A similar operation to the bilopancreatic diversion, this operation involves removing part of the stomach.
• Intragastric Balloon :- A deflated silicone balloon is placed into the stomach and filled with liquid to create a feeling of fullness.
• Implantable Gastric Stimulator :- This operation involves implanting electrodes into the stomach which stimulates the stomach to send messages to the brain to induce feelings of fullness.

Benefits

The most obvious benefit of this surgery is losing weight: it does depend on the type of procedure but generally, you could be looking at up to 80% of loosing your weight. This varies from one person to another but is an average figure. Weight loss means reduced body fat levels which equates to a slimmer, more natural looking you Apart from weight loss, another benefit for the surgery is a reduced risk of developing an obesity-related disease such as Type II diabetes. These conditions or ‘co-morbidities’ are extremely serious and very often are not reversible. Another factor linked to this is that these co-morbidities are life-threatening. In some cases you could be looking at losing seven years off your life. By undergoing the surgery you will reduce any long term health risks and ensure that you have a normal life expectancy.

Cost effectiveness

 

Making the decision to undergo this surgery is not an easy one, With Forerunners Healthcare you can be assured that your surgery will be carried out in one of the best private hospitals in India where you will experience the highest levels of patient care. The main reason that attracts more tourists to have their Weight loss in India is the vast difference in cost of treatment.  The treatment is upto 30 percent cheaper than the US or other European countries like the UK, France, Brazil or Germany. Citizens from countries such as Nigeria, Bangladesh and Pakistan can also benefit from this surgery due to availability of such cost effective and much affordable treatment.