Alzheimers assisted living in Thailand is comparable to what can provide at home and more affordable than a $12,000/month Swiss special care facility, according to one of our clients.

A Swiss gentleman, responsible for his afflicted father, approached us requesting a custom workshop designed to find an Alzheimer’s special care facility in Thailand. Caring for family members with Alzheimer’s is as big a problem for Europeans as it is for Americans: our Swiss client told us that he was facing bills of $12,000/month for his dad. We got his father  settled – in a facility superior to the one in Switzerland – for  $2,600/mo.

The  drawback is Thailand’s distance. If you can deal with this then the choice is clear: Thailand is far less expensive for  both patient and carer. Alzheimers assisted living in Thailand has five advantages:

1. Lower cost
2. Better nursing
3. Better medical care
4. Better cultural environment
5. More humane and cheerful facilities.

Care Costs Less

• Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has pledged to raise the daily minimum wage to Bt300 ($10) per day nationwide. So Alzheimers assisted living in Thailand costs 25% of the USA/UK/Europe/Australia.
• Land is plentiful and construction materials are cheap. Labor costs are low. Thais construct care facilities of extremely high quality yet quite inexpensively.
• Cost of living in Thailand is low for both the patient and carer. You can rent a nice studio apartment nearby for $250/month.

Nursing is Better

In the West patient care standards have fallen as the importance of profits has risen. Today’s harried nurses, working in deliberately understaffed facilities, have little time to devote to the bedside chats that were once an integral part of the caring process. In Thailand, overstaffing is the rule – everywhere. Staff in my favorite riverside coffee shop always outnumber customers. When the girls see me pull into the parking lot they have the WiFi switched on, a cushion on my favorite chair, my music playing, and my daily order (iced organic arabica cafe latte frappe with little ice) waiting on my table with, naturally, something to nibble, and a glass of iced water. The cost, 59 Baht ($1.99), is considered high here, but I refuse to complain. The same is true in Alzheimer’s assisted living facilities: after a recent accident I spent hours in the emergency ward. Four nurses fussed over me, covering my with a (warmed!) blanket as I lay on the gurney, bringing glasses of iced water and stroking my injured leg while chatting in charming, fractured English. They were in no hurry and, after a while, I was in no hurry to leave. The bill? 500 Baht ($17)

Better Medical Care

It seems strange to claim that medical care in Thailand could be better than in the countries where Western medical care originated, but it is. Not because of the physicians’ training – which is often identical, down to attending the same medical schools – but because of time and attitude. Thai physicians do not expect to get rich. They expect to take care of people  for the rest of their lives, and cure them. They devote themselves to that with the single-mindedness we expect in the Orient.

Thai Cultural Environment

Thailand, though officially Buddhist, has a Confucian family- and social-culture which maintains a tradition of genuine respect for older people. The elderly are almost always lovingly cared for within the family by the daughter for as long as possible. The entire family makes great sacrifices to support this home elder care, because not to do so would bring unbearable shame upon them. In Thai care facilities, seniors with Alzheimer are treated with love and dignity because that is how every Thai, without exception, has been brought up to treat older people.

Beautiful Facilities

He left intact the original building shown in the picture above because of its historical value, but the nursing facilities are 21st. century and because a Thai businessperson who constructed an ugly or cheap facility would lose respect (face: ไปแขงกแพ ขายขหนาเปลา ๆ bpai kàeng gôr páe kăai kêe ่้ ้่ nâa bplào-bplào) amongst his peers in Thai society, as would his family. Thais prefer to construct prestigious edifices with graceful colonnades and beautiful plantings, thereby gaining respect amongst their associates. Of course, there is also compelling market pressure to construct attractive facilities: customers prefer them.

General Nursing Home Care

Nursing home care in Thailand costs less than half the rate for Alzheimer’s care: it starts at $1,000/month for a good, professional facility.

If Alzheimer’s assisted living is a consideration for you, watch this short video about choosing care for your family member. It’s from the Alzheimer’s Association of America:

General Readings on Alzheimers Assisted Living

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The post Alzheimers Assisted Living in Thailand appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

When clients ask about apartments in Chiang Mai I recommend visiting Hillside 3 as a reference. It’s affordable and in a handy location.

Once you’ve done that, here are some helpful apartment renting sites:

• Chiang Mai Open Realty
• Perfect Homes
• Buy Rent Chiang Mai
• Realtor Chiang Mai
• Parker’s
• Chiang Mai Properties

Keith Allen found an apartment he likes and here’s what he has to say about it:

“Godfree, I wanted to write you about my new apartment. I imagine you have people asking you about possible living quarters. I want to suggest they look at and seriously  consider Ping View Apts.  www.pingview.com    I have a 900 sq ft apartment with dual views. I have an unbelievable 4th floor view, through the huge smoked glass windows, of Doi Suthep (I’ll attach some pictures also). Through the front panel of windows I have a view of the flood control lock on the Ping River. At night the lights are absolutely beautiful as they reflect off of the shimmering water. I am also only about 10 minutes away from Old Town and even closer to the Hang dong Big C if I take the first inner ring Hwy. – the exit being about a mile away. Being about 1 mile from the inner ring Hwy puts me in striking distance of almost anywhere in Chiang Mai in very short order.  As they say; Location, location, location. Read more…

More than location are the amenities here at Ping View. Daniel and his wife live on site so everything is constantly maintained. There is a swimming pool and a small exercise room.  Daniel has designed this to be retirement friendly if you so desire. The door fob opener I received has my  floor pre-programmed in it for the elevator service. I just pop in the elevator and put the fob against the receiver and I’m whisked to my floor. I have twice a week maid service and free internet included. I thought by looking at the building that I would never be able to afford an apt here. It is about the same cost as a lower cost house in Old Town.

The reason I wanted to let you know about this place is not because I’ll receive some money or rent for promoting Ping View. I just think a job well done deserves to be praised and promoted.

– Keith

PS:  You can also say that I spend less than 15,000 Bt a month. My apartment is also in the middle range of square footage. I know there is an apartment that is on the same floor as mine and about 1500 less. I also know on the sixth floor there some apartments are much larger. I can’t say enough good things about the owner and his wife. there was a knock on my door about 930 this morning. There stood the owner and his daughter with a couple of hot scones for me. I’m sitting here at my desk looking down at the lock on the Ping River and then turn my head 45° to the left and I have a beautiful view of Doi Suthep. I’m also about equal distance between the clouds and the Earth which makes for a spectacular view of storm clouds.  All this, and the other amenities I noted, for less than $500 a month.

Here’s a typical Hillside 3 apartment:

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