Salud.

• Position: TT: Health Care.

U.S. hospitals are ready to provide the best medical care available to international patients

It happens almost every day: A small child hit by a car is airlifted from the Caribbean to a Florida hospital for emergency medical care. A thousand miles to the northeast, a Brazilian executive is undergoing a comprehensive physical examination from a Portuguese-speaking physician, while his family enjoys a week-long vacation. And at a renowned medical center in the Southeast, a Mexican woman is participating in a clinical trial of a new cancer-fighting drug.

Like these patients, thousands of people from Latin America and the Caribbean travel to medical facilities in the United States each year for check-ups, second opinions, and state-of-the-art diagnosis or treatment.

While some patients travel to the United States for life-saving procedures, others combine a medical checkup with business or leisure travel. Many patients bring their families and enjoy golf, tennis, shopping, boating or local cultural attractions.

Convenient air travel, as well as phone, fax and Internet communications, make it easier than ever for Latin American patients to arrange health-related visits to the United States. In addition, many U.S. hospitals and clinics have developed special programs for international patients and their families, including travel, lodging and financial arrangements.

Mayo Clinic provides medical diagnosis, treatment and surgery, using a team of specialists working together. The Jacksonville, Florida, facility has been providing multispecialty care since 1986 to people from throughout the Americas who come to the United States seeking the finest in medical care.

Special programs include the Mayo Clinic Executive Health Program, designed to fit the schedules of busy executives and professionals. Patients receive a complete physical examination, including medical testing appropriate to their age, gender and medical history, a stress test for cardiac evaluation and consultations on nutrition and lifestyle - all in one or two days. The tests and consultations are tailored to each person's needs.

In addition to a state-of-the-art out-patient surgery facility right at Mayo Clinic, patients who need hospitalization are admitted to nearby St. Luke's Hospital, a Mayo-operated 289-bed facility where all the rooms are private rooms.

Mayo Clinic also is a resource for physicians, medical schools, laboratories and corporations throughout Latin America...