The Economist praises Thai health care system

[vinapu]

Article titled " An Asian model " in the last issue of that respected magazine is pretty long and is nothing but praise. It actually concludes " Thai health care may continue to be a model for the world".

It also points that this  is one aspect of Thai governance which flourishes, shining among instability.

Few statistics - average lifespan is 80, 1 year more than America and Europe and 7 years more than SE Asia average. 99.5 % of population is covered by health insurance in country with income per person 1/11 of that of USA. Even in middle  of pandemic public health bill was 6% of GDP compered with 11% in EU and 17% in USA.

And this in country which run through 11 prime ministers in last 2 decades

All that thanks to fast spreading communist scare in 1970's when Thai policymakers focused on rural development with public health as priority.

So we often sigh TIT but looks much more rich and developed countries , whatever that means have something to learn from Thailand and not only  Thai sex industry  is model for world to envy but also her health care system - last sentence is mine

[reader]

Agree about Thai health care system. Had opportunity this trip to use St. Louis Hospital (Sathorn) for a routine matter and came away impressed with professional and timely service at reasonable cost. Have also had good results at Bangkok Christian Hospital.

[10tazione]

1 hour ago, vinapu said:

99.5 % of population is covered by health insurance

Can someone convince me that this number is correct? Is it because illegal workers from neighbouring countries don't count as population? Or do they have access to free healthcare (I doubt)?

[Keithambrose]

1 hour ago, 10tazione said:

Can someone convince me that this number is correct? Is it because illegal workers from neighbouring countries don't count as population? Or do they have access to free healthcare (I doubt)?

Indeed. One of the Siamroads guides i use, Mac, has had various health issues, and says he cannot afford treatment.  If so, then no free health care for all!

[reader]

One massage guy from Soi Six told me that he has used Chulalongkorn (university teaching hospital in Silom). Says waits can be long to be seen but was treated well even though he’s not from Thailand.

I have on several occasions accompanied boys to hospital for various conditions as I know other members have. Never looked back and would do again. 

[vinapu]

5 hours ago, 10tazione said:

Can someone convince me that this number is correct? Is it because illegal workers from neighbouring countries don't count as population? Or do they have access to free healthcare (I doubt)?

No idea , I just quoted what paper says. I guess numbers are less relevant, more fact that they created working system which is as paper  put it affordable to both population and government.

4 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

Indeed. One of the Siamroads guides i use, Mac, has had various health issues, and says he cannot afford treatment.  If so, then no free health care for all!

it could be a case when doctors visit is free but cost of relevant medicine prohibitive and not covered

[10tazione]

10 minutes ago, vinapu said:

it could be a case when doctors visit is free but cost of relevant medicine prohibitive and not covered

This is an important point. I think Hiv for non-Thai sex workers in Thailand can still be a death sentence because either they cant afford the medicine or maybe they will get older less efficient medication with more side effects.

I also will never understand people who complain how expensive sex in Thailand is and come up with some price/gdp comparison with western countries but never factor in the risks the guys take like stds, life-long illness or possible  violence etc 

[vinapu]

10 minutes ago, 10tazione said:

 

I also will never understand people who complain how expensive sex in Thailand is and come up with some price/gdp comparison with western countries 

those are  visitors who like statistics more than sex I guess. 

Goes without saying that prices in Thailand went up but still options for cheap or relatively cheap thrills abound. When certain super hunk quoted me 10000 for overnight I lost breath for 1 minute and then said to myself, wait,  that 's 300 USD , where in the west you get such guy for 300 overnight ? Rural Montana or Galicia perhaps?

[Keithambrose]

46 minutes ago, vinapu said:

No idea , I just quoted what paper says. I guess numbers are less relevant, more fact that they created working system which is as paper  put it affordable to both population and government.

it could be a case when doctors visit is free but cost of relevant medicine prohibitive and not covered

Could be, but that wasn't the impression  I got. 

[PeterRS]

On 7/12/2024 at 2:25 PM, Keithambrose said:

Indeed. One of the Siamroads guides i use, Mac, has had various health issues, and says he cannot afford treatment.  If so, then no free health care for all!

The free healthcare is for Thais as they are the ones that pay taxes. We know that many non-Thais are denied treatment if they cannot afford the fees. And that is far from unique to Thailand.

One point, though, is that the government seems to have followed up on a decision made a couple of years or so ago - to increase the fees at public hospitals for foreigners. For example, I have had annual MRI scans at King Chulalongkorn public hospital since 2001. These have always been a fraction of the price I would have to pay at a private hospital. The MRI fee has remained constant throughout this time. On the other hand, the fee to the doctor who analyses the result has gone up from 250 baht to 850 baht. This is true of another doctor I have seen there. This compares with 1,000 baht (plus a 350 hospital fee for taking your blood presure, temperature and checking your height and weight) for a doctor I saw in May at BNH.

Although treatment at a public hospital means lots of waiting around, the doctors are excellent. Many spend just 2 or 3 days at the hospital and are specialsts at private hospitals for the rest of the week. The only problem is that, apart from real emergencies, obtaining appointments for a relatively routine illness is extremely difficult at short notice. Plus the phone operators speak very little English. For these, attending a private hospital is almost essential.

Lastly, medicines prescribed by public hospitals and obtained from the hospital's own pharmacy seem a great deal less expensive than those from private hospital pharmacies.

[kokopelli3]

Regarding free health care for non-Thais, some non-Thais are covered for HIV.  (For sure Laos and maybe Myanmar but not sure about Cambodia). 

[Keithambrose]

2 hours ago, PeterRS said:

The free healthcare is for Thais as they are the ones that pay taxes. We know that many non-Thais are denied treatment if they cannot afford the fees. And that is far from unique to Thailand.

One point, though, is that the government seems to have followed up on a decision made a couple of years or so ago - to increase the fees at public hospitals for foreigners. For example, I have had annual MRI scans at King Chulalongkorn public hospital since 2001. These have always been a fraction of the price I would have to pay at a private hospital. The MRI fee has remained constant throughout this time. On the other hand, the fee to the doctor who analyses the result has gone up from 250 baht to 850 baht. This is true of another doctor I have seen there. This compares with 1,000 baht (plus a 350 hospital fee for taking your blood presure, temperature and checking your height and weight) for a doctor I saw in May at BNH.

Although treatment at a public hospital means lots of waiting around, the doctors are excellent. Many spend just 2 or 3 days at the hospital and are specialsts at private hospitals for the rest of the week. The only problem is that, apart from real emergencies, obtaining appointments for a relatively routine illness is extremely difficult at short notice. Plus the phone operators speak very little English. For these, attending a private hospital is almost essential.

Lastly, medicines prescribed by public hospitals and obtained from the hospital's own pharmacy seem a great deal less expensive than those from private hospital pharmacies.

I understand  that, but Mac is Thai, so I'm not sure what the issue is.

[PeterRS]

4 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

I understand  that, but Mac is Thai, so I'm not sure what the issue is.

Sorry, I had not realised that when I should have. I wonder if Mac had first registered as required in his own home locality. Apparently that is nesessary for the free healthcare scheme. If his home is/was in Bangkok, then it would have been easy to register in the city. But if he was born much further away, perhaps he had not registered. Just a guess.

[Keithambrose]

10 hours ago, PeterRS said:

Sorry, I had not realised that when I should have. I wonder if Mac had first registered as required in his own home locality. Apparently that is nesessary for the free healthcare scheme. If his home is/was in Bangkok, then it would have been easy to register in the city. But if he was born much further away, perhaps he had not registered. Just a guess.

He was born  in Bangkok,  or so he told me. He showed me the hospital, from the river. His parents are both dead, he says. Like all things, I'm sure i only get half the story, if that. He has a lot of issues, disappearing from WhatsApp,  etc. I try to keep in touch, as he is a nice guy, and a good guide, registered,  and speaks good English. Never asks for more money, or a new phone(!), chooses cheap courses on menus, etc. He had down at heel trainers once, and refused my offer to buy him a new pair.

[PeterRS]

He sounds a gem.

[sudoxi]

Mac is great. Last tour I did with him he told me while he has access to healthcare it’s a long wait. Example. He has been one waiting list for dental care for over a year. While you can be seen there can be a long wait. 

[PeterRS]

9 minutes ago, sudoxi said:

Mac is great. Last tour I did with him he told me while he has access to healthcare it’s a long wait. Example. He has been one waiting list for dental care for over a year. While you can be seen there can be a long wait. 

That seems to me extraordinarily - extraordinary long! Before the expat price rises, I wanted a retina check since I have had a small tear in one for decades. I had to wait about 3 weeks to see an eye doctor who then referred me to a retina specialist. That wait was about a month. If Mac has some form of simple dental problem, a wait of over a year is nonsense. Decay can ruin a tooth in that time and that's before all the pain! If on the other hand he wanted an elective procedure like a perfectly good tooth crowned I can understand why there could be a longer wait - but more than a year? Sorry but I do find that very hard to believe.