I've written before about the excellent and inexpensive medical care at private hospitals in Thailand. My experience at Bangkok's Samitivej Hospital reinforced my overwhelming positive impression of medical services in Thailand. Samitivej is one of two hospitals in Bangkok where I could get the exam required by my cruise line employer.

Medical certificates for cruise ships are good for two years, and crew members joining a vessel must present one that will remain valid for the entire duration of their contract before going aboard. The medical certificate I had from my previous two contracts expires in March 2009, seven weeks before the end of my upcoming contract. So I need to get another one. I asked my agent to see if the cruise line would let me get the exam in Thailand, where the price would be a fraction of the cost an equivalent exam in the US, and he reported back to me that I just needed to get the exam with one of two approved physicians.

I chose Samitivej Hospital merely because it was closer to the hotel where Duk and I stay in Bangkok. After a trip on the Sky Train to the Phrom Phon station and a 1.5km walk through a posh residential neighborhood down Sukhumvit Soi 49, we showed up at the appointed hour of 8am on Nov. 3. First, some paperwork, then I was whisked back to the lab where a nurse drew a little blood and handed over a cup for a urine sample. I made a trip to the bathroom, and after a short wait, I was taken to another room for a chest X-ray.

Another wait, then across the building for a hearing test. Musicians should get regular hearing tests to set a baseline acuity and to show changes over time. My test turned out almost identical to my previous, with a dip in sensitivity around 3.5kHz. (I figure is right around the trumpet and electric guitar range -- surely a consequence of sitting with saxophone sections arranged in front of trumpets and of playing in bands with guitarists who crank their amps too loud.) Even with the dip, the audiologist told me, the result was normal.

Once done with all that, the nurse told me and Duk to go downstairs and have breakfast. As directed, I had not eaten during the 12 hours before the exam. At Samitivej Hospital, the cafeteria is a nice buffet with both Thai and Western dishes. We had a delicious vegetarian massaman curry and some glass noodles with vegetables with orange juice to drink. Pricey at 287 baht (about $8), but convenient since we didn't spot any food vendors along the street outside the hospital.

Back at the examination rooms after breakfast, I waited about 50 minutes to see the doctor. Eventually I was led into the doctor's exam room. He checked my abdomen, listened to my chest and said that all of my exam results were normal. He sent met out to pay the cashier before handing over my completed medical certificate.

Total cost: 2,790 baht (about $80), surely less than a fifth of the expense of a similar exam in California.

To get all of my paperwork organized ahead of my joining the ship, I made a PDF of the official Norwegian medical result form and sent it off to my agent. I'll keep the original and hand it over to the crew purser during the sign-on process. At the end of my contract, I'd get the certificate back with my passport, and I'd be able to use it for contracts during the next two years.