Bottom line up front: Work through this checklist before booking anything — each item links to a deeper article on this site if you need more detail on that specific step.
- Confirmed the specific facility's current JCI or national-equivalent accreditation status directly
- Verified my surgeon's specific board certification independently, not just via the clinic's own claim
- Gotten an itemized quote and understand exactly what's included and excluded
- Told my domestic physician about the trip and requested relevant records
- Built a written continuity-of-care plan, including a specific follow-up contact method
- Confirmed my procedure-specific fit-to-fly timeline and booked flights with appropriate buffer
- Checked whether my case involves any complexity that warrants extra caution
- Purchased travel and/or medical evacuation insurance that explicitly covers elective-procedure complications
- Reviewed consent materials in advance, in English, with time to ask questions
- Confirmed language support meets a genuine standard, not just a bilingual receptionist
If you can check every box
You've done the diligence this entire site is built around — proceed with reasonable confidence, understanding that no destination or facility eliminates all risk.
If you can't check every box yet
That's useful information, not a failure — it tells you exactly which conversation to have next, whether that's with your prospective clinic, your domestic physician, or an insurance provider.
For procedure-specific next steps, see colombiacosmeticsurgery.com, colombiadentist.co, colombianivf.com, or colombiamedical.co for the broader network overview.
The Takeaway
This checklist is the practical distillation of everything else on this site — work through it deliberately rather than relying on general confidence in a destination's reputation.