Chip Chick
Franchesca ended up backing out of the gastric sleeve surgery, but she was planning to get a tummy tuck instead. Markita wasn’t going to back out just because her friend did, so she traveled to Mexico anyway.
On May 6th, Markita went under the knife, but she never woke up. Unfortunately, something went terribly wrong during Markita’s surgery and she sadly did not survive the procedure.
Traveling outside of the US to have a medical procedure done is called “medical tourism” and it’s something the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tried to warn American citizens about.
Facebook; pictured above is another photo of Markita
“When reviewing the risks associated with medical tourism, travelers should consider both the procedure and destination,” the CDC wrote on their website. “Overseas facilities may not maintain accreditation or provider licensure, track patient outcome data, or maintain formal medical record privacy or security policies.”
“Medical tourists should also be aware that the drugs and medical products and devices used in foreign countries might not be subject to the same regulatory scrutiny and oversight as in the United States. In addition, some drugs may be counterfeit or otherwise ineffective (for example, expired, contaminated, or improperly stored).”
In light of Markita’s tragic passing, some of her family members are speaking out about the risks of traveling out of the country to have procedures like this done. You can donate to the GoFundMe created to help care for Markita’s children here.
Facebook; pictured above is one of Markita’s final posts as she traveled to Mexico
