Today our crew visited the Chao Phraya Adhaibhubate Hospital in the Prachin Buri Province. This hospital is a traditional/modern hospital hybrid most notably known for its heavy use of traditional Thai herbal medicines. In comparison to our other site visits, this one has certainly been the most unique and wholistic experience. The pharmacy staff at Chao Phraya has dedicated their efforts to re-establishing ancient Thai medical knowledge and herbal medicines by applying modernized pharmaceutical research and good manufacturing protocols. Our students were able to see every step of the process in one day; first from the organic farms that grow and dry the herbs, to the research facility on site that tests safety and efficacy standards, and finally to the pharmacy where patients can pick up over 145 traditional herbal medicines.
One of the more intriguing parts of our visit was witnessing the amount of research that goes into testing and assessing Thai herbals that have been used for centuries in an effort to validate or disprove the long standing claims of their efficacy. Coming from the United States its hard to not automatically dismiss claims from herbal medicines or ignore the claims made about ancient medicine, seeing how seriously other health systems are looking into using and improving ancient medical practices is refreshing and promising for the future of drug development and patient care.
-Justin R.
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