Zagreb Dental Tourism Changing Lives: From US Hell to Bagatin Clinic Life Transformation

Much is written about the potential of health tourism in Croatia, but sometimes a simple story is the most powerful message of all. From dental despair, financial unaffordability and a two-year timeframe to a life transformed within a fortnight with Bagatin Clinic in Zagreb. An inspiring and heartwarming example of health tourism in Croatia at its finest. Zagreb Story, published on Vera Pash Photo on January 14, 2018.

Do people really fly halfway across the world to get their teeth fixed? And if the answer if yes, do the savings really add up?

When I first started looking into the potential of Croatia as a medical tourism destination, I did not expect to find too much to excite, but within minutes of being in the company of the three clinics I had decided to contact for the feature – St. Catherine’s Specialty Hospital, Svjetlost Eye Clinic and Bagatin Clinic – I quickly realised that here was a sector of the Croatian economy which had huge potential if it was properly marketed. My initial findings were published in Health Tourism is Coming Home: Why Zagreb is the Next Big Medical Tourism Destination.

Apart from the medical excellence, one of the advantages these clinics have is that they are in the private sector and not bound by the usual official slowness and bureaucracy. There are a core group of clinics who are focused on what they want to achieve, and who are working together to achieve their goals, rather than waiting for the official support which should be given to develop this sector of the Croatian economy.

Nobody has been more dynamic than Bagatin Clinic CEO Ognjen Bagatin, who has been trailblazing all over the globe, sponsoring medical conferences as far away as Los Angeles, and doing all he can to give people the simple message that Zagreb and Croatia are outstanding destinations for affordable and high-quality private health care.

The message is slowly getting through, and more and more international patients are visiting the clinics of Zagreb, Rijeka, Opatija and Istria, combing excellent patient care with a wonderful tourism experience at a fraction of the cost of the same treatment back home.

Naively, when I first started looking into the health care issue, I assumed that the main Zagreb advantage came down to cost, but the closer you look at what is happening on the ground, the more you realise that there are so many levels to Zagreb’s health tourism offer, levels which Croatia’s health tourism professionals are taking to an ever higher plain.

It is time to read Carl’s story, and how the customer care of Bagatin Clinic, which started long before he made the journey from the States to Zagreb – his first ever international trip – mirrored the excellent dental care that was to follow. It is one of the most heartwarming tales I have read in a long time, of a man priced out of a dental solution by the system in the United States, a man who faced a two-year process to fix his teeth even if he could find the money; a man whose teeth were so bad that he had long ago lost the inclination to smile.

A man who came to Zagreb in a once-in-a-lifetime trip and emerged with a life transformed, a totally new dental look, and a fabulous tourism experience to Advent in Zagreb with some Scandinavian stopovers to add a little extra spice.

For a fraction of the price.

A beautiful story from a friend who truly cares. Read how Bagatin Clinic made a stunning impact on the life of this 42-year-old American.

Want to see how Bagatin Clinic can help your smile or other medical needs? Visit their website here.

Interested to know more about health tourism in Croatia? 25 things to know about health tourism in Zagreb and Croatia.