Medical elective at Mae Tao clinic, Mae Sot, Thailand

Journal article

Mae Tao Clinic in Mae Sot, on the border between Thailand and Burma, was established 20 years ago by Dr Cynthia Maung, a Burmese of Karen ethnicity who fled to Thailand in search of refuge from the brutal military regime of her home country. Her vision of providing much-needed medical care to fellow refugees was originally realized in modest settings: a small hut served as a clinic and a rice-cooker doubled as a sterilizer of surgical instruments. Since then, the clinic has come a long way and now comprises medical, paediatric, reproductive health and minor surgical departments as well as a prosthetic limbs department for victims of landmines, a laboratory, and a blood donation system. The clinic is staffed by qualified health professionals and volunteer “medics” who receive basic training in healthcare on-site and almost all of whom are refugees from Burma themselves. Funding is minimal and accrued largely from private donors and NGOs. Collaboration with the local government hospital and international aid organizations such as Médecins sans Frontières has led to a strong network of support and referrals. My medical elective at Mae Tao Clinic was an eye-opening lesson not only in providing clinical care in low-resource settings, but also in the inevitable entanglement of medicine and politics.

Authors: Fellmeth, G

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Alma Mata Journal of Global Health
• Journal: Alma Mata Journal of Global Health
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 18-21
• Publication date: 2013-09-01
• Acceptance date: 2012-09-01
• Keywords: SBTMR