Mae Tao Clinic

Dr. Cynthia Maung had been out of medical school for a just a few years in 1988, when the military junta began arresting and murdering democratic activists, teachers, doctors, and many others. Chaos spread across the country, even reaching the small Karen village where Dr. Cynthia worked in a private clinic. She fled across the border into Thailand, walking through the jungle at night and sleeping in fields by day. She wound up in Mae Sot and lived in Huay Kaloke refugee camp. With help from foreign relief workers and Karen leaders, Dr. Cynthia started a makeshift medical clinic to care for refugees recovering from war wounds and malaria.
She expected to return to Burma in three months.

Nine years later, Dr. Cynthia is still on the border running Mae Tao Clinic. In that time, she has gone from sterilizing medical instruments in an aluminum rice cooker to running a clinic that treats more than 100,000 patients a year, delivers 5 to 10 babies a day, trains medics and nurses, provides prenatal checkups, childhood immunizations, HIV testing and counseling, and education about nutrition, sanitation and family planning. The is also a prosthetics department that provides prosthetics and rehab for landmine survivors and other amputees that is staffed by survivors of landmines. The clinic accepts money donations of any amount and definitely puts it to good use. Check out their website for more info on donations.
Time Magazine article on the clinic.

Because of restrictions by the Thai government the staff of the clinic as well the families of all the in-patients, all of whom are refugees of Burma, must live on-site of the clinic and are allowed to travel only back to Burma or the refugee camps. There are currently 1000 people living at the clinic.

While volunteering we have met many nice farangs who also spend their vacations doing good work. We worked with Dr Eva from Quebec and Dr. Jim from Taiwan. We've met Dr. Damien and Nurse Prue from Australia (pictured above) and enjoyed their company over many a meal. While choking on chilies and discussing whatever incredible things we experienced in clinic that day, we have repeatedly solved all the world's problems. If only the world would heed our advice.

For all you medical types who enjoy tropical medicine horror stories, check out Dr. Damien's blog. He's got the low-down on Meningeal TB, Malarial Encephalitis, eyeball abscesses and
the odd bird-flu sighting.