Our Hoi An Hospital Experience

Hamish had been complaining of an ear ache for a few days. A common complaint by children who swim in the not so clean waters of Bali.

We had hoped that if he refrained from swimming that it would pass quickly. Unfortunately this was not the case. As we arrived at Hoi An, Vietnam he was in alot of pain and we noticed some redness and swelling to the back of his ear. We had recently met a little boy who had a severe ear infection from bali waters so we were keen to get on top of this condition before it got too bad.

I asked the receptionist at our resort if there was a medical centre nearby. She asked what was wrong and I told here. She then made two phone calls. One to the local hospital and one to a taxi. She confirmed that Dr. Quang was on duty and that he was excellent with children. So flying blind and not knowing where we were going, we headed off in a taxi for the short ride to the Pacific Hospital.

On arrival, it was like stepping into a 1950's hospital or at least how I imagine they looked back then based on the movies of that time. The place was antiquated, yet clean and functional. The nurses worn blue uniforms with a white apron and white triangular hat. Maybe this is why it felt so 1950's. I had to hide my giggles when I approached the head nurse.

She was expecting us and asked if we were from the Vinh Hung Riverside Resort and I confirmed. She then gave me some paperwork to complete and walked off. A few minutes later, a neatly dressed, well spoken doctor appeared. He introduced himself and read through my paperwork. Soon he showed us to an examination room. I was surprised to see the equipment he was ready to use. Not only did he use the standard, ear light and magnification device that we are accustom to but he then used a microscopic camera to look inside the eardrum with the image appearing on a nearby computer screen.

Dr Quang took great care in explaining the condition and was very detailed in his treatment plan. He then asked the nurse to fetch the medication for us. He explained what I was to do for the next 5 days and then showed us to the cashier. $65 USD for consultation and medication.

We were in and out in about 10 mins.

Overall I was very impressed with the level of care we received. The treatment took affect within 2 days and Hamish was back to his happy healthy self.

If vietnam is a third world country, their medical system and level of care certainly is not.