On my recent visit to Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok I noticed that each of the various clinics had staff in the patient waiting areas doing face-to-face customer surveys. Turns out this is part of Bumrungrad's efforts to improve patient feedback and raise the bar on their already high international standards. About half of their estimed 3,200 patients daily are from foreign countries.

It's all part of a management effort to win yet another first for a Thai hospital: the Thailand Quality Award (TQA) a global standard for corporate management. Only one other Thai corporation, a gas separation plant, has ever qualified for this.

Bumrungrad has long set the standard for progressive hospitals in the region. It was the first hospital awarded Hospital Accreditation (HA) and the first in Asia to win JCI accreditation.

Whether or not they manage to achieve this new benchmark remains to be seen. But with over 1,000 physicians and 4,000 nurses on staff, just getting everyone on the same level of qualty patient-care is an achievement in itself. Clearly the patients -- Thai and internalional alike -- benefit the most.