How to Find a Good Rehab in Thailand

You are here:

How to Find a Good Rehab in Thailand

by Hope Rehab Thailand Team

Topic at a glance:

The Current Situation Facing Those Looking for Rehab in Thailand

New rehabs are opening-up in Thailand all the time. This can be a good thing if it means more variety, more choice and more support available for those of us looking for affordable treatment. A bit of competition can also encourage service providers to be constantly improving their services.

The arrival of new treatment centers in Thailand benefits those of us working in the local recovery community if it means more people go home and tell their family and friends that they had a good experience and would recommend it to anyone in need. This kind of publicity puts Thailand more firmly on the map as a serious place to get help for addiction issues. So new rehabs in Thailand can be a win-win for everyone.

One of the problems is that basically anyone with a website and a couple of empty rooms can claim to be a Thai rehab.

Not All Rehabs in Thailand are Reputable

There is a good selection of rehabs in Thailand that are doing an amazing job, and each of these faculties has something to offer, but there are also programs that are less than ideal. Of course, there are also opportunists who see opening a ‘rehab’ as an easy way to finance their stay in Thailand. We regularly hear from people who have had a terrible experience at one of these “cowboy outfits”.

One of the problems is that basically anyone with a website and a couple of empty rooms can claim to be a Thai rehab. These outfits are often run by enthusiastic amateurs, but they lack expertise and the resources necessary to provide safe and evidence-based care. Worst of all, they often mislead those looking for help about what they can provide – this can have fatal consequences. These facilities are usually operating illegally, but it can be hard for someone looking for help from abroad to realize this.

The Danger of Choosing the Wrong Rehab in Thailand

If could mean that an opportunity to escape addiction is wasted, and there is no guarantee that there will ever be another opportunity.
Clients can be at high risk if adequate medical services are not easily available.
Poorly trained treatment providers can do more harm than good.
Clients can quickly lose their motivation if they feel they have been misled or cheated by the claims made by one of these facilities beforehand.
An inadequate rehab can turn people off rehabs for good.

How to Find a Good Rehab

The following six points can help you find a good rehab in Thailand:

The first point is to check if the rehab is licensed by the Thai ministry of Health because only quality treatment centers will get this license.
The second point is to check the photos on the websites. Is there a proper team on the photo or is it just a sales pitch? Do you see images of clients engaging in activities or is the website made up of just generic internet photos? Do they show structured therapeutic material like a proper workbook or do they just throw around terms like ‘evidence-based treatment’ and you see nothing else? If they would have these crucial things, they would show it.
The third point is to see if things make sense. If they show 10 team members with MA and BA levels of education and you only need to pay US $2,500 than you can be sure that such a team won’t be there while you have treatment. It is just impossible if you calculate the cost of such a team plus housing, food, utilities, group material etc. for a group of clients.

The fourth point is to check the reviews if you haven’t checked those yet. Are there reviews on google and how are they? Keep in mind not a single rehab will only have positive reviews because we all are dealing with unwell people and you can never make everyone happy, but how is the general experience of ex-clients who had their treatment at those facilities?
The fifth point is to look at the focus of the treatment center. General treatments centers in the private sector will usually look inviting, but is the focus on treatment of is it more a retreat or a holiday camp? Overcoming an addiction is a serious business, so be sure that any facility you choose has more to offer than just the ‘holiday camp’ experience.
The sixth one is to check how much treatment you are going to get. At Hope we give clients 3 individual sessions per week, but we are aware that at some places you will only get one per week and we consider that not enough to support people with deeply ingrained addiction issues.

Important Questions to Ask When Looking for a Rehab in Thailand

Is there enough medical support?
Are the pictures on the rehab’s website showing their own facilities (e.g. we have seen rehabs using pictures of local swimming pools which could mislead clients into believing that it was on-site).
What are the qualifications of the staff who will be dealing with you during your stay?
Does the team carefully evaluate the suitability of potential clients beforehand or are they keen to accept anyone?
Is this rehab legal (i.e. licensed by the Thai ministry of Health)?
Does the program have depth (e.g. many facilities claim to offer a mindfulness provide, yet this involves little more than a few minutes meditation every day)?
Is there a waiting list? Every rehab has low periods, but there may be a more worrying reason for why a facility always has space available.

Choose Hope Rehab Thailand

Hope Rehab Thailand is a quality rehab, and we are regularly mentioned in the international press. Of course, we are biased, but we would like you to consider coming to us. If you are still not convinced, have a look at our website to see what we do, and check out these 50 reasons for choosing Hope Rehab Thailand.

If you have found this post useful, please help us by sharing it online.