Between 2013 and 2019, our team built and operated the UK growth engine for a multi-specialty medical travel company covering hair transplantation, plastic surgery and bariatric surgery. When the program began, the company was treating around 30 patients a month. Six years later it was treating more than 700 a month — a 23× increase, earned in the single most competitive source market in medical travel.
The starting point
British patients were already the most active medical travellers in Europe, but they were also the most sceptical: burned by horror stories in the tabloid press, they demanded verifiable credentials, transparent all-in pricing and English-fluent support at every step. The company had strong clinical partners and honest pricing — what it lacked was a system built around how UK patients actually research, compare and decide.
What we operated
We rebuilt the funnel around the British buyer. Search and content strategy answered the exact questions UK patients type — costs versus private UK prices, surgeon credentials, aftercare back home — while paid campaigns were structured around consultation bookings, not clicks. A native-fluency telesales desk worked UK hours with response targets measured in minutes; a single CRM carried every case from first enquiry through travel, procedure and UK-based follow-up. Every stage was measured, and what the numbers rewarded, we scaled.
The results
Monthly patient volume grew from 30 to 700+ — an annualised run-rate rising from roughly 360 to more than 8,400 patients across three specialties. Growth compounded year over year through the entire program rather than spiking around campaigns, because the engine converted demand the market already had.
Why it worked
Six years in one market taught us the lesson that still shapes every DGS program: depth beats breadth. Master one buyer’s questions, hours, fears and trust thresholds completely, and the volume follows — then the same playbook opens the next market faster.