Decent Cheap Medical Care?

[ronnoi]

Greetings one and all! surely some wise person amongst this fine group can tell me where one can get good cheap medical treatment in Bangkok.

I don't mean the fancy hospitals with the fancy U.S> $$ symbols splattered all over them, but a decent good medical centre...

Hope someone can help....

[Titus]

I've been looking that answer myself. It's common knowledge that you'll get cheaper treatment at family dentists (who may or maynot speak english) located in the suburbs. Having said from all the search that I did the cheapest dental clinic (with good english speaking staff) seems to be bankokdentalclinic.com You can check their fees on their website.

[barryofthailand]

Bangkok Hospital for medical, and dental both.

[Sheryl]

Greetings one and all! surely some wise person amongst this fine group can tell me where one can get good cheap medical treatment in Bangkok.

I don't mean the fancy hospitals with the fancy U.S> $$ symbols splattered all over them, but a decent good medical centre...

Hope someone can help....

For general medical care, Phayathai 2 Hospital near Sanam Pao BTS station (about 1/2 km from Victory Monument) and Chao Phya Hospital across the river near Central Pinklao are both good. Limited Ebnglish but they're very friendly and will try to find an interpretor if necessary.

[zzdocxx]

I guess I could piggyback my request for info on this thread.

This is my first post here, I was referred by a friend.

I saw the "60 minutes" program about Bumrungrad Hospital. Since then a couple of people have told me that it is not necessarily the best hospital nor the best value in Thailand.

I am thinking about getting a "mini facelift", might anyone be able to steer me to information about good plastic surgeons?

Thanks!

[charles]

Depends on what medical treatment you want of course, but in my experience some/many of the private hospitals serving Thais do just as well as the more foreigner-oriented places with nice lobbies, carpets and Starbucks (i.e. Bamrungrad and Samitivej) but charge half the price. (I've also found their staff more pleasant and genuine than at Bamrungrad but that's another matter)

Examples? Maybe St. Louis (Sathorn) or Bangkok Christian (Silom).

Even cheaper I might suggest Petcharavej Hospital (beyond Foodland on Petchaburi Road). My wife had a baby there recently and we were pretty impressed, no complaints at all really. Natural delivery, in there for 3 nights with "VIP" room, just under 19,000 baht all-in including first vaccinations plus drugs and various bits and pieces to take home. Try seeing how much a similar thing would cost at Bamrungrad.

The main potential problem with these better value places is that it really helps if you speak good Thai. Obviously you don't want any misunderstandings when it comes to medical matters.

[Sheryl]

I guess I could piggyback my request for info on this thread.

This is my first post here, I was referred by a friend.

I saw the "60 minutes" program about Bumrungrad Hospital.  Since then a couple of people have told me that it is not necessarily the best hospital nor the best value in Thailand.

I am thinking about getting a "mini facelift", might anyone be able to steer me to information about good plastic surgeons?

Thanks!

If by "mini face-lift" you mean thermage (radio frequency), I highly recommend Dr. Nantapat Supapannachart. She's on staff at Bumrungrad but also has her own string of clinics called Apex, she rotates her time among them. I think it's probably cheaper, and it's certainly more pleasant and convenient, to see her at Apex. There's one at Emporium and one in Siam Center. Phone is 02-664-8613 at Emporium, 02-658-1196 at Siam Center.

I've been going to her for 2 years now for Botox and had the thermage also, and I look a full 10 years younger.

[ExNewMex]

cheap, decent medical care = oxymoron

kidding :-)

[zzdocxx]

Thanks Sheryl,

I actually was thinking more along the lines of a surgical mid-face lift, but I will look into the procedure you mentioned.

I am reminded of the saying, usually applied to construction: You can have any two of the following three, but not all three--cheap, fast, and good.

You can have it cheap and fast, but it won't be good.

You can have it cheap and good, but it won't be fast.

Or you can have it fast and good, but it won't be cheap.

BTW the doctor you mention, is she a dermatologist or ???

[Sheryl]

Thanks Sheryl,

I actually was thinking more along the lines of a surgical mid-face lift, but I will look into the procedure you mentioned.

I am reminded of the saying, usually applied to construction:  You can have any two of the following three, but not all three--cheap, fast, and good. 

You can have it cheap and fast, but it won't be good. 

You can have it cheap and good, but it won't be fast. 

Or you can have it fast and good, but it won't be cheap.

BTW the doctor you mention, is she a dermatologist or ???

Yes, she's a U.S. Board certified dermatologist who is also BoU. S. ard certified in laser surgery and in cosmetic dermato-surgery. One of the things I like about her is that she is up to date on all the latest technologies and good at advising what solution will best work for a given problem. She's not at all cheap, but is top quality and of course if it turns out that you can get a good result through a non-surgical approach, that will be less expensive than surgery. Anyway I suggest at least consulting her, I find her pretty frank in telling what can results can be expected. If she thinks a non-surgical approach can give you what you want, it's probably worth a try. By the way, she also does insertion of "aptos threads"which is a very minor procedure to lift up parts of tha face, some people refer to that as a "mini-lift"although it does not involve any cutting away of tissue and can be done in the office. I've heard mixed resports from people who've had the procdure, but again I think it's a question of having someone skilled enough to advise which procedure is best suited to specific individual needs.

[zzdocxx]

I was actually looking into APTOS threads last year, but they had their approval turned down by the FDA just the week before my consult appointment.

Another thought is that if she really is compentent, then she probably knows a good plastics guy and might be a good source of info on that.

I noticed you have commented on another thread about dry hands, I will go check it out. In the meantime, I am again reminded of a "pearl" in this instance, which is

"The Three Rules of Dermatology"

1. If it's wet, dry it.

2. If it's dry, wet it.

3. If that doesn't work, use steroids.

Thanks again for the ideas!

Edited April 22, 2005 by zzdocxx

[rinda]

I guess I could piggyback my request for info on this thread.

This is my first post here, I was referred by a friend.

I saw the "60 minutes" program about Bumrungrad Hospital.  Since then a couple of people have told me that it is not necessarily the best hospital nor the best value in Thailand.

I am thinking about getting a "mini facelift", might anyone be able to steer me to information about good plastic surgeons?

Thanks!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If by "mini face-lift" you mean thermage (radio frequency), I highly recommend Dr. Nantapat Supapannachart. She's on staff at Bumrungrad but also has her own string of clinics called Apex, she rotates her time among them. I think it's probably cheaper, and it's certainly more pleasant and convenient, to see her at Apex. There's one at Emporium and one in Siam Center. Phone is 02-664-8613 at Emporium, 02-658-1196 at Siam Center.

I've been going to her for 2 years now for Botox and had the thermage also, and I look a full 10 years younger.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I am going to Thailand and am interested in Thermage. How much did the Thermage cost? Did you phone to make an appt or can you email.

Thanks for your help!

[Sheryl]

If by "mini face-lift" you mean thermage (radio frequency), I highly recommend Dr. Nantapat Supapannachart. She's on staff at Bumrungrad but also has her own string of clinics called Apex, she rotates her time among them. I think it's probably cheaper, and it's certainly more pleasant and convenient, to see her at Apex. There's one at Emporium and one in Siam Center. Phone is 02-664-8613 at Emporium, 02-658-1196 at Siam Center.

I've been going to her for 2 years now for Botox and had the thermage also, and I look a full 10 years younger.

I am going to Thailand and am interested in Thermage. How much did the Thermage cost? Did you phone to make an appt or can you email.

Thanks for your help!

The cost varies depending on size of the area to be done (i.e. face only, of face & neck etc) . Also they have different packages, some for 1 treament some with 2, some with additional treatments like mictodermabrasion etc. In general it will be somewhere in the range of 30,000 - 60,000 Baht depending on area to be done and the package..that's between US$750 - $1,500. Probably about $1,000. Prices may drop over the comi ng year as more places in Thailand get the technology creating more competition.

They have a website www.apexbeauty.com, you can see from there if email appointment possible or not. Good luck!

[Sheryl]

I was actually looking into APTOS threads last year, but they had their approval turned down by the FDA just the week before my consult appointment.

Another thought is that if she really is compentent, then she probably knows a good plastics guy and might be a good source of info on that.

I noticed you have commented on another thread about dry hands, I will go check it out.  In the meantime, I am again reminded of a "pearl" in this instance, which is

"The Three Rules of Dermatology"

1.  If it's wet, dry it.

2.  If it's dry, wet it.

3.  If that doesn't work, use steroids.

Thanks again for the ideas!

There's a fourth rule...

If you have no idea what it is, paint it purple (gentialn violet)

Cures almost everything, although messy and unsightly.

[camerata]

She's not at all cheap, but is top quality and of course if it turns out that you can get a good result through a non-surgical approach, that will be less expensive than surgery. Anyway I suggest at least consulting her, I find her pretty frank in telling what can results can be expected.

She did a fairly good job of laser surgery on my eyes at Bumrungrad, but not everything was "top quality." Also, the results weren't exactly what I expected. If anyone needs more detail about my experiences, please PM me.

[lakshmi]

oops sorry i see a new post thx

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If by "mini face-lift" you mean thermage (radio frequency), I highly recommend Dr. Nantapat Supapannachart. She's on staff at Bumrungrad but also has her own string of clinics called Apex, she rotates her time among them. I think it's probably cheaper, and it's certainly more pleasant and convenient, to see her at Apex. There's one at Emporium and one in Siam Center. Phone is 02-664-8613 at Emporium, 02-658-1196 at Siam Center.

I've been going to her for 2 years now for Botox and had the thermage also, and I look a full 10 years younger.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I am going to Thailand and am interested in Thermage. How much did the Thermage cost? Did you phone to make an appt or can you email.

Thanks for your help!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The cost varies depending on size of the area to be done (i.e. face only, of face & neck etc) . Also they have different packages, some for 1 treament some with 2, some with additional treatments like mictodermabrasion etc. In general it will be somewhere in the range of 30,000 - 60,000 Baht depending on area to be done and the package..that's between US$750 - $1,500. Probably about $1,000. Prices may drop over the comi ng year as more places in Thailand get the technology creating more competition.

They have a website www.apexbeauty.com, you can see from there if email appointment possible or not. Good luck!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[cvinke]

She's not at all cheap, but is top quality and of course if it turns out that you can get a good result through a non-surgical approach, that will be less expensive than surgery. Anyway I suggest at least consulting her, I find her pretty frank in telling what can results can be expected.

She did a fairly good job of laser surgery on my eyes at Bumrungrad, but not everything was "top quality." Also, the results weren't exactly what I expected. If anyone needs more detail about my experiences, please PM me.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What do you mean by not "top quality" . You mean her skills, the hospital's facilities, or the results was below expectation.