Empirical studies related to interrelationships between variables perceived value, customer satisfaction and behavioral intention conducted in the Maldives context and in the medical care industry is very rare. A quantitative cross-sectional study conducted in natural settings using a survey questionnaire to assess the interrelationships between above mentioned variables by utilizing a conceptual model created from three interrelationship models obtained from previous research. Data collected from willing participants across the 19 atolls resulting in a total of 385 responses obtained after data cleaning. A stratified proportionate random sampling method used. SPSS 25.00 and AMOS 23.00 used as analysis tools. The Sobel test applied to analyze the mediating effect of customer satisfaction on the relationship between perceived value and behavioral intention which confirmed a positive and significant relationship between perceived value, customer satisfaction and behavioral intention. Study rejected the hypothesis which test the mediation of customer satisfaction on the relationship between perceived value and behavioral intention. This study is first of its kind to generalize findings on Maldivian’s medical seeking behavior, and results helps policymakers, medical practitioners, medical institutions, and respective administrations to provide better customer perceived value towards providing higher customer satisfaction, which in effect improve customer behavioral intention towards medical care service providers.

This quantitative study contributes to theory and practice by analysing the interrelationships between service quality, customer satisfaction and behavioural intention among Maldivians’ seeking medical tourism services. A total of 385 samples collected using stratified proportionate random sampling and a survey questionnaire approach in a non-contrived cross-sectional setting with minimal interference of the researcher. The study seeks to fill existing gaps in literature related to medical industry, and this study will be a first of its kind for the Maldives, as it is conducted nationwide across the 19 atolls to generalise the results of this study conducted in the Maldives context. The findings indicated that service quality significantly affects customer satisfaction as well as behavioural intention. Further analysis is provided for testing the intervening effect of customer satisfaction on the relationship between service quality and behavioural intention. The study results would help policymakers in the Maldives to formulate better policies on medical care and medical tourism. Academics in the field of business management and marketing would be able to utilise findings to enrich literature. Furthermore, the study assists marketeers and business analysts formulate new marketing strategies to penetrate the South Asian region market, with an emphasis on the medical care industry in the Maldives.

The aim of this study is to examine how outbound Maldivian travellers who have received a medical service in any hospital in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, or Malaysia perceive the quality of the service levels. A survey questionnaire was used to gather cross-sectional data from 400 outbound medical travellers from the Maldives. Respondents who received overseas medical treatment at any hospital in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, or Malaysia were included in a random sampling selection. SPSS 25.00, and AMOS version 23.00 used for data analysis, including structural equation modelling. The findings reveals that the service quality dimension of tangible, empathy, efficiency, and safety positively and significantly influence hospital service quality. Contrarily, the level of improvement in medical care has a negligible effect. Hospitals in Thailand and Malaysia have overall service quality perceptions scores of 91.8 and 84.6 per cent, respectively, which is higher than those in India and Sri Lanka, indicating 67.2 and 77.6 per cent, respectively. The study highlights the necessity of improving hospital efficiency and safety in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Malaysia. This empirical study supports new findings of hospital service quality. As a result, academics may supplement their analyses of previously published literature with new data and empirical support from the medical industry in South Asia. The findings of this study minimise knowledge, empirical, and population gaps seen in recent literature on medical service quality related to outbound medical travellers from the Maldives.

Vaginal infection It is one of the most common illnesses in the world. affecting women's health, with more than half of all women experiencing at least one episode in their lifetime. Vaginal disease can be both infectious and chronic. Bacterial vaginosis (BV), vaginal candidiasis, and vaginal trichomonas are the three most common types of infectious vaginitis based on microbial etiology (Abdul-Aziz et al., 2019). Antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) infections are caused by microbes that are resistant to antimicrobial agents. As bacteria develop resistance, many previously effective drugs no longer work (Ali, 2018). Each year, AMR infections kill 700,000 people around the world. By 2050, antimicrobial resistance may be responsible for the deaths of up to 10 million people annually. De Kramer and colleagues (2016): According to a recent research study (Amirkamali et al., 2017), antibiotic resistance genes blab-TEM may be able to predict the presence of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.