Country Report of Thailand

Ladies and Gentlemen.  It is my pleasure and privilege to be with you all in this significant seminar!  The delegation from Thailand consists of ten people who are seriously engaged in the profession of massage.  We are certain that we will be able to exchange experiences and knowhow with all the experts and specialists in this field so that we can up grade the blind masseurs in our country.  Particularly, we have in our team an high official from the Medical Registration Division, Department of Health Support Services, Public Health Ministry: Mr. Pathara, who will assist us in achieving our goal: Medical Massage for the Blind in Thailand.

On behalf of delegation from Thailand, I would like to thank our host, Korean Blind Union and those who have worked very hard to make this seminar a success and particularly our sponsor, the Nippon Foundation and Tsukuba University.

I am glad to bring to you a summary of the Development of the Massage for the Blind in Thailand.

Seventy years ago, blind people in Thailand were helpless and a burden to their family!  Having a blind child in one family was a belief that the family must have had a great sin in their past lives!  Many people thought at the time that blind children were a bit better than chair and tables because the could talk.  After Miss Genevieve Caulfield, an American Blind lady, came to Thailand in 1939 and found the first school for the Blind, the belief regarding blindness and blind people has been gradually changed.  Much progress has been achieved after Thai Government began to pay more attention to the Disabled by passing the Rehabilitation Act in 1991 and Persons with Disabilities Empowerment Act in 2007.   The public awareness concerning the Blind has been increased by demonstration of well trained blind people in our society and the increasing numbers of institutions, organizations of and for the Blind.

Now there are more than one thousand of blind people with Bachelor Degrees and over a hundred with Masters’ Degrees.  There are more and more blind people engaged in the occupations of teachers, telephone operators, musicians, hospital workers, etc.  We also have blind people self employed in various businesses.  In  this report, the Massage will be emphasized.

Massage is so far the most promising occupation for the Blind particularly in Asia!  Massage can be divided in to two main categories: health massage and
medical massage.  Thai Massage teaching was introduced to the Skill Development Center for the Blind thirty years ago.  At that time, very few people believed that massage was suitable to the Blind.  There was a belief then that men and women touching each other was dangerous and sinful!  Most Thai people merely believed that the Blind could not see therefore they could not know where to put their fingers on the right spots!  Of course most of them have changed their belief!  Now Thai Massage is the most promising occupation for the Blind in Thailand and Asia Pacific.  Good progress has been achieved compared with the time when  first Thai Massage teaching to the Blind was introduced thirty years ago but  There is still very long path we must struggle.  Besides China, Japan and Korea, blind people in this part of the world are never legally allowed to inter in to medical massage! 

In Thailand, masseurs must take national exams set up by Medical Registration Division, Department of Health Support Services, Public Health Ministry, then  are eligible to obtain the license.  Up till now, no single blind person in Thailand has received medical license!!  The Blind are engaged only in Health Massage.  Only last two years, the Ministry of Public Health permitted blind people to take examination for medical license!  To be survived in this very competitive occupation, one has to be very skilful and diligent.  Blind masseurs and masseuses must keep improving their skills and technique and move from regular health massage to medical massage.

This is the main reason Foundation for the Employment Promotion of the Blind (FEPB) took up an initiative to conduct a training program called “Preparing blind masseurs and masseuses to take national medical license exams.”  Our training course consists of following subjects:   Scientific Health, Traditional Thai Medicine, Thai Massage, Law and Morals, introductory of foreign massage, Reading/writing Braille,  O and M and analysis of 35 cases.    Total 1154 hours. The duration of training course will be two years beginning January 2009 to December 2010. 

We have 6 licensed teachers, twenty text books all converted to MP3 and Daisy format.  FEPB is now the only organization for and of the Blind legally permitted to open such training program.  We have fifty blind masseurs and masseuses who are very anxious to up grade themselves from health masseurs to medical masseurs, from various parts of Thailand, came to enroll in this training program.  These fifty very enthusiastic masseurs and masseuses have already gone half way: they passed the examination last year which entitled them to be Assistant Medical Masseurs.  The certificates were presented on January 26 2010 by Dr. Tares Krassanairawiwong, Director Bureau of Sanatorium and Arts of Healing, Ministry of Public Health. 

These fifty masseurs and masseuses are studying hard so that they are well prepared to take the national medical license exam in 2011.  They are the first group of blind masseurs and masseuses in Thailand who are eligible to take the historic medical license examination.  When they become licensed masseurs, they are then eligible to open their own clinics!  We are fully aware that to have a successful business in this field, skills of massage or medical license alone is not sufficient.  One must have knowledge and experiences in management, marketing, finance, human relationship, etc.  FEPB plans to conduct business courses for our blind masseurs in the near future!  For the past thirty years, blind masseurs have been working under institutions of and for the Blind.  Very few individual blind masseurs succeed independently!  Therefore, it is necessary to empower our blind masseurs by giving them the knowledge and experiences in massage business.

Thank you very much for your attention.  I am happy to answer any question.

The Country report comes from:THAI BLIND UNION AND FOUNDATION FOR THE EMPLOYMENT PROMOTION OF THE BLIND.