Panama has always been at the forefront in regards to medical technology in Latin America.

Mary Ellen Smith (the name of the subject has been changed to protect privacy) is an extremely happy woman. After years trying to conceive, she and her husband traveled to Panama last year to undergo an in-vitro fertilization treatment. Upon her return to the U.S. a couple weeks later, Mary Ellen discovered that her memories of Panama would be far more durable than the tan she and Steve came back with.

More and more people are traveling to the Isthmus, not only to get cured, but to enjoy a vacation and save money as well.

Pana-Health, an organization encompassing top-rated medical practitioners from a wide range of fields and specialties, is a pioneer in the new field of "Medical Tourism", not only in Panama, but also in Latin America. The idea behind the concept, according to Dr. Richard Ford, is to offer citizens of the so-called "first world" the same quality of medical services and facilities at a fraction of what the same services would cost in their own countries.

Panama’s excellent medical facilities and geographical position are also attracting many Latin American patients, who sometimes find it difficult to enter the United States due to visa restrictions.

The increasing costs of medical treatments in North America and the access to the same services in Panama, are the keys behind the success of Pana-Health.

Panama’s reputation as one of the healthiest countries in Latin America dates back to the construction of the Panama Canal, when the country was freed from tropical diseases still present in "first-world" countries in the early 20th century. Not only did the U.S. doctors help to eradicate malaria, yellow fever and typhoid from the Isthmus, they inspired generations of Panamanian physicians, nurses and lab technicians, many of whom were trained in the U.S. and Europe, returning to their homeland to build hospitals and clinics with the latest technology.

State-of-the-art CAT scanning machines (which eliminate the need for catheter incisions), tri-dimensional computer reconstructions, the latest radiotherapies for cancer, and the latest assisted reproduction programs are some of the technologies available at Pana-Health affiliated hospitals and clinics. Commenting about Panama’s medical technology vis-à-vis that of the "developed world", Dr. Ford said: "We had a case in which a patient from the U.S. became furious with his hospital back home because its obsolete computers were not able to read the CD’s containing the tests he underwent in Panama."

The ever-increasing costs of medical services up north and the relatively accessibility of the same services in Panama is also one of the keys behind Pana-health’s success. For example, according to Dr. Ford, whereas a dental implant costs between US$1,900 and $3,000 in the Midwestern United States, the same procedure could cost $1,000 in a top-rated Panamanian hospital. "If a patient needs, say 10 implants, that would imply more than $10,000 in savings," said Dr. Ford. The same occurs with cardiology, ophthalmology and plastic surgery, which are among the most sought-after treatments at Pana-Health.

Featuring a group of professionals fluent in English, Spanish and other languages, Pana-Health seeks to provide quality service from the time the patient sets foot at Tocumen International Airport. The group is affiliated to Pesantez Tours, a local tour operator which provides transport to and from the airport, as well as a number of tour packages, depending on the length of stay of each patient. Pana-health is also affiliated to Panama City’s best drug store chains and gyms.

For more information on Pana-Health, log on to www.pana-health.com

By Bob Bauman

Last year in the preface to my book, Panama Money Secrets , I wrote: "With this unique history and a huge potential for future development, Panama, as it begins its second century, is on the threshold of a new and unequaled period of prosperity and growth. And you can be part of it."

While my book describes the tremendous growth I witnessed first hand since 1999 when I returned for the first time since 1975, I didn't foresee just how fast Panama would "take off," as they say. A "boom" is usually defined as a period of time during which sales or business activity increases rapidly. Today Panama meets that definition -- it's a bull market, and you can get in on it, before it's too late.

A group called World Investment News has produced a report called Investors Guide on Panama . It's subtitled, "Panama, the opening of a new era". It was written by a team that spent four months in the country and contains information, in both English and Spanish, on industry and tourism. It also provides a contacts database, Internet web sites and other information on how to do business in Panama. In some ways this is a companion to my Panama Money Secrets. A summarized version of this guide was published in US NEWS & World Report on Dec. 5, 2005.

Panama City and bay. The city's upward growth has been tremendous in the last 15 years.

The report points out that Panama, a small country of only three million people, is at the crossroads of not only Central and South America, but of the entire world, because of its famous Panama Canal. Says the report: "It has been for years one of the best kept secrets for international investment and tourism in the Americas."

But now the secret is out. For many different reasons, the past three years have changed the face of the country and transformed it into one of the fastest growing economies of the region. Sam Taliaferro, one of the American pioneer real estate and retirement developers, (he's the one who started the retirement boom in Boquete), points out that "investors from all over the world are coming to Panama to buy anything from land to houses, from islands to haciendas, investing in logistics, trade or telecommunications, a sector with enormous potential as five underwater fiber optics cables pass across the country."

That's just the business side of the Panama boom. There is a whole other market in second and retirement homes as expats from the U.S., Canada and Europe snap up the real bargains to be had here in Panama City condos and pent houses overlooking the Pacific. Then there are the quiet mountain retreats, such as Boquete, or beautiful Pacific Ocean front lots and homes -- all of these at low prices that have long since vanished in the United States. And all this is just a couple of hours by air from Miami or Houston.

Multiplaza Pacific Mall. The increasing number of expats has prompted the construction of new shopping centers in the city.

The St. Andrews Society of Panama City is being revived. New residents very welcome. Anyone interested, please call Agnes Santomenno, 271-0033, 264-4173.