Bryn Elise, a TikToker with over 400,000 followers, flew from the U.S. to Turkey to do a three-day comprehensive check-up that cost just $810. She did a great job showing her followers what it was like traveling for health tourism. So much so, that I’m now considering going, especially after all the money I pay for health insurance … over $2,000 a month for my family and every time my kids go to the doctor, the co-pay is $50. An emergency visit is $450 and Olivia went three times three weeks ago and then had a five-day stay. I haven’t received the bill yet but according to my health insurance broker, it’s going to be over $10,000, which is insane.
The hospital Bryn went to looks like a five-star hotel with state-of-the-art technology and the doctors all seem to be qualified. Here’s her video and below is the transcript. Below that are some of the most popular comments. The video has already had over 17 million views
@bryn.eliseTrying the VIP checkup package 🫢 Memorial Hospital Bahçelievler📍 To make an appointment i just went to the Memorial.com.tr website and filled out the contact form 🙌 Or you can email memorial.eu@memorial.com.tr I’ll make a followup video sharing my results soon 😊♬ original sound – Bryn Elise
“I flew to Turkey to get the most in-depth checkup of my life, and it was the greatest thing I’ve ever done for my health and my bank account. Doing this in the US would have cost me thousands and taken months to line up, but in one day, we’re doing it all. Scans, tests, meetings with specialists, and the price of everything is jaw-dropping. I’m here at the fanciest hospital I’ve ever seen with a list of mysterious ailments to get to the bottom of. So let’s go.
I was met by Sam, my amazing translator slash coordinator for the day. First thing you’ll do is get your blood drawn so they can start running tests. You’ll also do an EKG. They’ll take your blood pressure, height, and weight. And now we’re off to radiology for a chest X-ray and an abdominal ultrasound. We also did a thyroid ultrasound and some more tests. And then we went over to nuclear medicine and did a bone density scan. How amazing is that?
Next, you’ll break for lunch, and they’ve really taken hospital food to a whole other level here. They actually brought in a popular Turkish restaurant to handle all the meals, and patients can literally order it to be delivered to their rooms. It’s unreal. I did a lot of research for this trip and ended up choosing a Memorial Group hospital because they’re accredited by the Joint Commission International. And I have never seen a hospital with so many amazing reviews.
Now it’s time to meet with the internal medicine doctor and go over my test results. I was trying to play it cool, but I was nervous. We went over one by one, the 30+ scans, tests, and cancer markers I was tested for in depth, and I got to ask all my pressing questions about my health. Now time to visit the gynecologist and do a pap smear. And I was like, cut the cameras.
After that, ophthalmology. The doctor said, “Okay, this is how you see now, and this is how the world should look.” Oh, turns out I have astigmatism, and your girl needs glasses. Then you’ll normally go to a dental examination, but I actually just did one, so we skipped it. Now, cardiology. So I did a stress test and a chest ultrasound, which may have been my favorite part of the entire day. I got to see my heart beating in my chest. It was incredible.
This is why I love health tourism, because I would never be able to afford this level of care in the United States, and this entire full day package only cost $810. Personally, I’d rather spend $700 on a flight to Turkey, get dozens of tests there, and take a whole vacation than spend the thousands that this would have cost in the United States.”
Here are some of the most popular comments:
@usernamesarehard: $810?!?! Thats literally an xray in the US! This country is failing us so badly. thank u for sharing!!!
@andrews0491: It’s an absolute crime that we can’t do this once a year in America and have it covered by insurance. We are so behind.
@Vanessa Ortega: Why didn’t i think of health tourism before!!! This is so awesome!
@Ania: $810?! Oh my gosh! With every penny 😭
@some texican: The hypochondriac in me thinks this is the perfect vacation. I’d go every year
@K: EVERY SINGLE specialty doc in one day is life changing!
@April Showers AZ: Girl I’m at the age where I’d plan my vacation around this hospital stay
Would you consider health tourism? Did Bryn convince you to make a trip over the Atlantic to get a thorough check-up? About 15 years ago, my doctor recommended that I get a colonoscopy since my mom died of colon cancer. My insurance wouldn’t cover it because I wasn’t over 45 at the time and to get one done in Los Angeles would have set me back more than $3,000. Instead, I flew to Erie, Pennsylvania, where my sister was living, and got one done for a third of the price. If I’d known about this hospital, I probably would have flown to Turkey instead.
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