Most of us who are just thinking of retirement are probably still in pretty good shape.  We wouldn’t be thinking of moving half way around the world if we weren’t.  But as the Buddha’s teaching tell us, if we are going to be born into this life then by law we will grow old, get sick, and eventually die.  All we can really hope for is that they come in that order.

Now, with the Thai population growing older just as populations from all over the world are, the concept of assisted living has taken hold.  Thailand has any number of assisted living communities currently in their early stages.  Already, home care is a growing industry.

There are schools throughout the country that specialize in training care givers who will come to your home to care for the elderly and for those who have trouble caring for themselves.  A good friend who has MS and is bedridden and blind, found the cost for home care daunting back in the U.S.  In Bangkok she has 24 hour trained care givers in her home that her Social Security disability payments can easily cover.  A older English woman I know who had taken a fall and broken her hip had home care as well as rehab therapy.  But home care is only one of the ways we can benefit from the low cost of health care here in Thailand.

Assisted living communities for both expats and Thais, where one can live independently but at the same time have lots of the drudgery of everyday tasks like cooking and cleaning and laundry and shopping taken care of, will be the next step for many of us.  Follow this link to see what one of the first of these communities has to offer.  The McKean Hospital Senior Care Program is in the ancient city of Chiang Mai in the north, right on the banks of the Ping River, in a beautiful botanical garden-like setting.  For less than $1,000 per month you are provided with room and board, activities, and nurse and doctor’s care right where you live.

We may not be ready for that right now but who knows what the future will bring.  All we know for sure is that there will be change and it is best that we be prepared for what is to come.