The Where, Why & How Much of Choosing the Right Hospital [S6.E47]

Greg and Ed discuss an important conundrum facing expats and
tourists in Thailand: When sick or injured, should you go to a
private Thai hospital or a public one? The difference in cost is
substantial, typically somewhere between a factor of three and
ten. For major procedures you probably want to spring for private
care, if you can, but for 'standard' things like stitches and
sprains, is a public hospital okay?


Greg begins with the very recent story of his son needing
stitches for a split lip. Greg and his wife got treatment for his
son at Bumrungrad Hospital, which is known for its international
standard of care, but also for its high cost, especially in
Thailand. A split lip might seem fairly mundane and more
appropriate for a government hospital, but there were other
factors that necessitated special care. Luckily, the treatment
went fine and all is well, but Greg's experience highlights the
difficult choices that expats face when it comes to medical care.


Ed recounts a scary story of his wife getting into a motorbike
accident and being taken to a nearby public hospital for
emergency treatment. But due to the seriousness of her injury,
his wife was going to need months of physical therapy with no
guarantee of a full recovery. Ed decided to pull the ripcord and
move to Bangkok Hospital, another facility renowned for quality
care and high prices. At BH, Ed noted that the customer service
was extremely high level with LOTS of handholding and explaining,
which eased his anxiety considerably. But did his wife actually
get better medical care? Ed is not really sure about that, but
the care certainly FELT better. 


Last, Greg does a quick interview with friend of the podcast
Bangkok Pat, who unfortunately was recently bitten by a dog and
thus in need of a quick decision on medical care. In his case,
the proximity and convenience of a private hospital (and its
higher cost) won out over the uncertainty of a government one,
but he's not sure he'd make the same call if it happened again.


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