Medical Research - March 19, 2014

We the new pick-up truck bought and sitting in the inside parking area of our home it is time to do some medical research here in Thailand. 

I did drug research for 46 years but figured I had enough in 1996.  This is about health care here in Thailand.  I have has some experience as a few years ago I dropped a heavy glass in our bathroom and needed to go to the hospital and have an x-ray of my foot, all the glass taken out of the wound and thirteen stitches to close it up.   

The care was excellent and the total cost, including daily follow up care for over two weeks and the removal of the stitches was $51.00 USD.  It was done at a private hospital here in Mae Sai, on the Myanmar (Burma) border.

About six months later, I had the same doctor that did the my stitches when I broke the glass, surgically remove a small cyst from my left arm.  The cost of that for everything was around $14.00 USD. 

There are two ways of getting medical treatment here in Thailand. For Thais there is the government plan in government hospitals and then there are the private hospitals and clinics that you pay cash at the time of service. 

Now, I have been having a joint lubricant with the brand name of SUPARTZ sodium hyaluronate done every six months for the last few years with great results with both the use of the knee and the pain reduction in the knee.

This winter my medicare advantage plan through Anthem Blue Cross denied the treatment saying they did not feel I was getting enough benefit to justify their cost. 

I spent over fourteen hours on the telephone with them and the doctor called three times at their request.  He said that every time he called the number they told him to call he got a recorded message and they would call him back.  Well, they never called back.  He also faxed the information to them on three different occasions.  

Now the research that I'm going to do is see if i can get the injections done here, maybe for less than my co-pay in the USA.   That co-pay is a little over $450 dollars for the three injections.

I also have two little sores on my head and a little bump on the left inside area of my leg that I wanted to have a doctor look at.

Well, this morning we hopped onto Daeng's motorbike and went to the Kasemrad Sriburin Hospital Clinic, here in Mae Sai.  That is were I had the stitches in my foot in the paragraph earlier. 

We walked into the reception desk at 10:00 AM and they brought me right up on their computer.  We told the nice lady that we were there for two reasons.  first, the bumps on my head and leg and second, my knees.  

She said we would have to come back for the Orthopedic doctor on Monday or Friday but I could see a doctor now for the bumps on my head and leg.

She said to just wait by room 10 for the taking of my vital signs.  We waited about 10 minutes and they called my name.  I did my weight of 117 Kg and blood pressure of 127/79 and pulse rate of 59. 

We were told to wait by treatment room number 1. About 10 minutes later they called my name and I went into the doctor's area and talked with a very nice young doctor who spoke perfect English.  

He examined me and told me the limp on the inside of my leg was a "Tag" and the two limps on my head were infected hair follicles.  He said he was going to have them give me some antibiotics to take and a cleanser to wash the area of the head bumps.  

He then said I should come back and see the dermatologist/plastic surgeon on Saturday and he would take off the tag with liquid nitrogen and re-look at the two bumps on my head.    

He also said to come back on Friday to see about my knees. 

We paid for everything including the medicine and were out of there at 10:50 AM.  Oh, the total cost for today, doctor, pills and cream to wash the area with was 370 THB, about  $11.56 USD.  

We will see the Orthopedic specialist on Friday.