Hi Dr Young,

I am a westerner living in Bangkok who is HIV positive. Your site and answers have helped me out so much in the 2 years I have known I have HIV.

Now I would like to help someone else.

I read the post from the person who has a Thai friend with HIV and doesn't know where to turn. The best hospital in Bangkok for treating HIV is definitely Bumrungrad Hospital (www.bumrungrad.com) and is a world-class facility. This is where I go. However, I feel the person in question will not be able to afford the treatment provided there - its cheap by western standards but still very expensive by local standards.

Another better option and place for them to start would be the "Drop-In Centre for People With HIV/AIDS" at the excellent Chulalongkorn Medical Centre here in Bangkok. The best web-link for this service I can find is: http://www.aegis.com/conferences/iac/1996/PubD1493.html

It's a start anyway, and maybe something small I can do to help.

There *IS* still a lot of fear and prejudice here towards people with HIV/AIDS. But things are changing...slowly. It surprises me that that fear exists when 1 in 60 of the population here have it. (1 million people out of 60 million total). But thanks to sites like yours, things are slowly turning around.

Thanks again, Dr Young. You are a true saint.

Thanks for posting.

Your on-the-ground insight is very valuable and welcomed. I'm sure that it will be very important to our readers in Thailand.

I'm not sure about sainthood, but one of the most rewarding things about working in the HIV community is just that, the sense of global community; where people help others simply help others, without regard to race, ethnicity, religion or country.

Thanks for sharing and being part of that larger community. BY