Mahidol UniversityBangkok, Thailand

Kaitlyn Butko and Drew Detwiler, SPTs

Pinklao

Pinklao Outpatient Clinic● 8 story building with a different specialty of PT on each floor - mostly musculoskeletal,

neuromuscular, and pediatrics

● International internship students primarily work with patients on the Musculoskeletal

floors

● Treatment sessions are split 80% manual therapy and 20% exercise

● Therapists translate between students and patients who don’t speak English

● Modalities are used for nearly every patient, mainly ultrasound but also high powered

lasers rarely used in the States.

Siriraj Hospital

Siriraj Hospital

● This is the one exposure to acute care while you are in Thailand (unless you get sick)

● This is primarily observational as it is a very busy hospital and international students

usually slow things down due to the language barrier.

● You will have the opportunity to tour a medical museum as well as see specialized clinics

dedicated to stroke, pulmonary, and cardiac rehabilitation.

● Here you will also learn the differences in Thai healthcare, seeing the similarities of the

public and private sections of the hospital.

Salaya - Mahidol Main Campus

Salaya - Mahidol Main Campus Outpatient Clinic● Located on the main campus within the Rehabilitation Science building

● Here you will observe mainly musculoskeletal conditions, but will also have the

opportunity to observe in pediatrics.

● We observed a doctoral thesis defense, as well as reviewed and critiqued some

soon-to-be PT graduates on their research presentation while on campus. There are

multiple opportunities to engage in the non-clinical side of the profession as well.

● This is where we had the opportunity to interact with the Thai PT students the most,

which was a great learning experience for all of us!

Cultural differences in the clinic● It is very typical to see patient bow to their therapist and for the therapist to return the

gesture. This is a sign of politeness and respect in Thai culture.

● Shoes are not to be worn in government or public buildings, meaning no shoes in the

clinic: only bare feet or sandals (this even includes the ICU at the hospital). There is a

rack of slide sandals outside each clinic for patients to use.

● Each patient (even geriatric) needs to be able to complete a full squat to the floor, as

squat toilets are common in Thailand.

● Raising your voice is generally considered rude along with pointing, both of these should

be avoided.

Profound Clinical ExperienceWhen working with pediatric patients, the families were extremely involved in each aspect of the child’s

care. In many cases, patients had been working with physical therapy for years, and each appointment, the

caregiver or multiple caregivers would directly help with treatment. We saw many mothers, aunts,

grandmothers and fathers all assist with the therapy session. It was really interesting to see how involved the

entire family could be, especially in long-term cases, and how positive and invested they all seemed to be.

One patient’s aunt would order specialized adaptive devices from Amazon to a friend in the US, who would

bring them over when she traveled back to Thailand, as there weren’t as many adaptive options locally.

Seeing the extent of care brought from the entire family to lift up the child was really cool to experience.

Profound Cultural Experience

An international experience isn't just about what you are able to experience in the clinic. Thai people are

known for being one of the friendliest cultures in the world and that was very obvious as we traveled around

the country. The locals take a lot of pride in Thai history and one guide even told us a story of a previous king

of Thailand who wanted to send Abraham Lincoln a rare albino elephant during his presidency as a sign of

goodwill. Thankfully, though Lincoln appreciated the offer, he denied, because there were no boats large

enough to carry the elephant and all the food needed to feed it for months at sea. We were also able to learn

about world history from another countries point of view in regards to both World War 2 and the Vietnam

War, through not only talking to locals but visiting various museums throughout the country.

Questions? email : kbutko@kumc.edu or d614d286@kumc.edu