I wouldn't have work done in any of those 3rd world places on a bet.

My dentist around the corner is exceptionally professional, has international qualifications, and I have known him since secondary school.

Plus, I am privately insured at my own cost, so why would I get an unknown person in a 3rd world country to do things?

Like plastic surgery and boob jobs that go badly wrong, there are some stupid people that go for a cheap job.

Last Oct. we were in BKK and my wife had to be admitted to Samitivej hospital for severe gastro enteritis which she picked up while we were in India. As an RN in the US for nearly 35 yrs.with the last 24 working ICU in a major university based teaching hospital in Chicago I can say w/o hesitation that the care she received was excellent and the cost for the entire stay was about 5k. We had a private room with a futon for me, a balcony, micro wave, dishes, frig and water that was supplied daily. The fee for my knee surgery here in Dec. was over 11 k and this was an out patient charge. Therefore there is not necessarily a correlation to cost and quality of care.

There are also people who research facilities and realize that our health care cost are very high and for some without insurance it is better to go abroad to a reputable facility, get the treatment you need and save a ton of money.

I too have insurance and got an excellent pair of glasses in BKK in about 5 hrs. and the cost was less than what I pay here even with my insurance applied.

I dont agree with painting all so called 3rd world medical facilities with one stroke from the same brush.

JM2C.

Typo. It was about 6k, not 5k. Still.....

I might add that I had vascular surgery in Manila last year as my insurance here did not cover the procedure. It was going to cost me $13,000 if done here in the states. I had it done by a qualified specialist trained in the United Sates at a cost of about $4000. It went fine - it was an outpatient procedure and lasted about 2 hours. No problems, no issues all went fine!

DS had to get an angiogram (at BKK Heart Hospital) and his treatment was excellent, and probably at least 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of treatment in the USA. He was extremely pleased with his treatment and the results.

I've had minor dental work done at Bumrungrad and have always been satisfied.

I met an Aussie couple at my Sukhumvit hotel. The wife was getting implants done at Bangkok Dental Clinic and was very pleased with her results.

Medical care in Thailand - even in the large private hospitals is unacceptably inconsistent. There is also vitally NO COMEBACK if you have encounter problems.
Any legal solutions can take YEARS.
The most obvious problem for the customer in the event of trouble is that to get any form of redress you will need at some point to be in Thailand.
many practitioners in Thailand have gone through the Thai training where graft and nepotism are rife - thew result is people practicing who are poorly trained or who have huge gaps in there training.
don't be swayed by those posting "qualifications" from mainly the US as these are often the results of short visits as observers as they aren't qualified to practice. Many institutions in the States make extra money by handing out certificates of dubious worth. Western Europe or the EU has much stronger government control on this sort of thing.

in short any sort of medical care in Thailand is a lottery.

"don't be swayed by those posting "qualifications" from mainly the US as these are often the results of short visits as observers as they aren't qualified to practice. Many institutions in the States make extra money by handing out certificates of dubious worth."

Name a few.

See the link below. Samitivej hosp. in BKK is well accredited including recognition from the joint commission USA which overlooks hospitals in the US.
http://www.samitivejhospitals.com/ho...n/sukhumvit/en

Your premise is not supportable though I do recognize your opinion but find it completely lacking in facts.

In Bangkok my wife and I have had work done at both Bumrungrad and more recently, Bangkok Smile Dental Clinic (Suk 21). Both are fine with Bumrungrad being more expensive.

I had a gold crown done in Phuket 6 years ago and that went fine too.

I find it interesting that there has been a rash of people joining forums and praising Dr. Sunil.

A rash? I only saw one, and that post is gone.

This is a relatively new trend- Medical Tourism- that is taking off! A number of folks who do not have insurance find this an alternative. In addition many are finding that with the " Un- affordable Care Act" - the deductibles are so high that having some procedures done abroad makes sense. Some are finding that they can have a vacation and get some procedures done at less cost then what they would pay at home. Of course one has to be careful about where one goes and what procedures to get done overseas. (for example- I would not recommend heart bypass or hip replacement)

"A rash? I only saw one, and that post is gone."

I said "forums". There are other forums.

What other forums is Dr. Sunil touted on?

Many practitioners go to places like the US and join a "course" at a Uni - accredited or not - and observe medical procedures for a few months - as their qualifications are not recognised in the US or other countries they seldom are ale to actually practice hands-on. At the end of their stay they get a certificate to say they have attended a course at whatever institution it was. Many of these places gain extra income from this sort of activity and hope their courses will broaden the experience of foreign doctors etc., but others are far more cynical and see it as a way of making easy money. The systems in Europe, although not immune, are not so open to this form of abuse.

The result is that many practitioners have "trained in America" certificates of widely varying value.

The reason that many Thai medical practitioners cannot practice in the US or Europe is because of the language barrier or problem. That is why <i>"their qualifications are not recognised in the US or other countries". </i> At the same time, most if not all, of the US, European and foreign doctors cannot practice medicine in Thailand because they cannot take the Thai medical examination which is in Thai. Any US, European or foreign doctors who have not passed the Thai medical examination caught practising medicine in Thailand will be liable for felony charges.

However, there are lots of Thai doctors who have passed their US or European medical certification and can practice in said countries or continent. So if the factor of having a US or European board certified doctors treating you in Thailand is important for you then you need a good referral or you need to do your research in choosing one.

Example on two Thai medical practitioners who have passed their medical certification and did practice abroad:

http://www.bumrungrad.com/en/search-....8RG8u0wc.dpbs
http://www.bumrungrad.com/en/search-....Vn59E0j8.dpbs

Personally, I avoid the Thai doctors with "USA" credentials. I prefer Thai trained.

And, khunwilko, is there anything you like about Thailand?

Hmm.. the link doesn't work but for my example above search for the following doctors:

Kris Chatamra
Visuit Vivekaphirat

Working as a doctor or dentist in the States requires a long and convoluted process of study and testing of professional ability.
In stead of this many opt for an "observational" visit.........

"States. An Observership Program is not intended to fill gaps in clinical knowledge or training; it is meant to familiarize and acculturate an IMG to the practice of medicine in an American clinical setting, and provide an introduction to American medicine as they will experience it in a hospital-based residency program. This guide may be modified to fit the needs of the physician preceptor and IMG observer in individual situations as appropriate."

as for language - If a doctor from any country is going to practice outside his/her own country, a good standard of English is required.
One reason is that it is necessary for doctors to be able to communicate effectively AND ACCURATELY with their patients - this also applies to support staff.
The other an possibly ore important reason is that English is the lingua franca of all forms of international healthcare and the language that most new research is written in.....failure to reach an appropriate standard would mean that the practitioner would not be able to keep up with current developments on medications technology and care systems.