It never struck me when I visited hospitals in Thailand but… all the doctors I ever met there were Thai. Not strange, after all it’s Thailand, I hear you say. Why do I bring it up? I read an article on Usenet, which originally appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald. The author claims that in order to be allowed to practice medicine in Thailand, one needs to pass a Thai language test! The article fails to point out that this is a rather strange requirement, considering that it does elaborate on the strains international medical tourism puts on the Thai healthcare system in terms of doctors.

In my opinion it would make a lot of sense if Thai hospitals were allowed to employ let’s say Indian doctors to treat foreign patients. I clearly see more advantages than disadvantages if the government would give hospitals which cater to foreign patients to hire doctors from abroad – Thai speaking, or not.  

After all, Thai Airways is allowed to hire foreign pilots.

The SMH article, like many others, confirms that Thailand has left Singapore in the dust as the medical hub of South-East Asia. The biggest competition in Asia now is India. The Thai government needs to remove all administrative hurdles to stay ahead in this competition for market share. Growth rates of around 20% per year, as medical tourism in Thailand enjoys them, always lead to short-term human resource shortages. Even better, removing the need for Thai language skills could indirectly also improve health care options for the part of the local population, which cannot afford treatment in places like the Bumrungrad International Hospital or the Bangkok Hospital. Read it all.