richard_smith237

Maybe you wrote this already earlier. Couldn't she write you a prescription and with that you should be able to get it in a pharmacy? He did write it earlier.... (one of the earlier pages). She was unable to write the prescription as that would be for the Hospital Pharmacy, or enable him to get the required molnupiravir from the hospital pharmacy - so it was the prescription itself which was blocked - The Doctor would (could) only write a prescription for the Cough Mixture and Paracetamol which the Op purchased from the hospital Pharmacy for 620 Baht. The Doctor told the Op that he needed the molnupiravir and wrote it down on a piece of paper. The Op explained that he’d called Fascino (Pharmacy), they didn’t have it in stock, so it was unlikely any other Pharmacy would have it in stock seeing that Fascino is the ‘go to Pharmacy to get anything’. The Ops only solution was to go through the ‘whole process again’ see another Doctor at a different hospital (Memorial) who would prescribe the recommended molnupiravir.

Cognitive dissonance. It is essential to his psychology that Thais are the good guys and foreigners are the bad guys. Therefore, his subconscious mind bends the truth and distorts the facts to prevent a Thai from ever being in the wrong, even if it means the most illogical and trivial are dreamt up or blown out of proportion. It simply has to be that the foreigner did something wrong and all Thais involved are completely innocent. His mind will not allow any other outcome to present itself. It's sadly a very common occurrence amongst the Thai apologists here. Edit: This also answers the question @peterrabbit just asked. I wonder IF instead of discussing ’Thainess’ Neeranam has instead chosen to give us his examples of 'Thainess’ by presenting excuses for and attempting to defend this type of discrimination by a Thai against a non-Thai......

It's a good question - but how are we to know what discriminatory practices are in place an an establishment until we encounter them? We know national parks operated discriminatory dual pricing against non-Thai’s. We know hospitals can practice discriminatory dual pricing against non-Thai’s. We have now learned that some ‘hospitals’ can refuse needed medication to non-Thai’s during and after being treated.

You do know the full story - the Op provided a great deal of detail. You are now attempting to blame the discrimination directed towards the Op on something you imagine.... you are getting desperate to excuse the inexcusable almost as if you wish to level the same level of discrimination at the Op yourself.

Possibly... but its limiting the ‘audience’ is it seems aimed at our used primarily by expats - the site seems pretty ‘dead’ the last time I looked at it. The benefit to an agent ‘copying’ your FB Market Place advertisement is to market it as an agent. IF they get a bite, they contact you and ask for xx commission (usually 3% but in some areas such as Pattaya the cheeky beggars seem to ask or as much as 5%). Basically, they’ve decided to try to sell something of yours without your permission - some people do not like this as its somewhat ‘underhand’.

Why are you arguing with the obvious and defending the poor treatment. The Op clearly states he went to the very same hospital he took his relatives to because this is where they were treated well. His experience was different and based on his nationality.

And he (the Op) didn’t say he raised his voice... but he most certainly ‘should’ have raised his disappointment and ask her to pass that along to those making the decisions. Whether she [the Dr.] would do so is a different matter, either way, its discriminatory treatment and must be highlighted in a manner which stressed the disappointment rather than simply walking away disappointed. --------- I have had situations in a hospital where I have disagreed with the Dr who was a junior paediatrician, I asked her to bring Supervising Doctor on Duty, I spoke with them both of my disagreement with the suggestion of the junior Doctor - The senior agreed. I said I wanted no further interaction with the Junior Doctor. The Senior was excellent and discussed all decisions with me in detail. A different situation (damaged back) Dr. Said just a pulled muscle... I disagreed, Doctor insisted he was correct, meanwhile couldn’t stand and had shooting pains down my legs. I was really annoyed that the doctor wouldn’t investigate any further (private hospice), I was in a lot of pain, I asked my Wife to ‘please take me out of here, this guy is an lazy idiot’ (yes, I wanted to be rude, I was quite angry)... I we went to another private hospital, I was x-rayed... 1 damaged disk found on x-ray, given an MRI, 3 damaged disks in total... The Doctor at the first hospital was lazy and the Doctor at the second hospital agreed !!!... Sometimes, we just have to speak up (that doesn’t mean shouting as some people seem to think speaking up means).

Perhaps, 1FinickyOne, you are unable to give negative feedback without screaming at anyone... But, for many of us, we can object and give negative feedback (also known as ‘not taking any cr@p’) without screaming and behaving like a juvenile child. In this case the Op may well have voiced his understandable annoyance. It's ok to show people that we are not happy with something when facing poor or discriminatory treatment.

Its strange but at night time the ‘mood' of taxi drivers shifts.... When I used to take a taxi at night with my Wife (then girlfriend) I noticed that if she did the talking it opened the door for the taxi driver to behave like a d!ck. It was subtle, but a sufficiently recognisable general character trait that led to me being the one to do the talking whenever we go into a Taxi.... I’d use a firm but polite tone etc... I suspect this just sent the message to the taxi driver that I could speak Thai, knew where I was going etc... Sometimes its the subtle things and I’m sure the above could be ridiculed by some posters who don’t understand the minor idiosyncrasies of dealing with different characters here and in other countries. But speaking politely but firmly etc definitely placed me in a position of ‘relative dominance’ which perhaps made the difference between a driver messing us about and just doing what he’s asked. Certainly for a lone female that position of dominance remains with the driver... in society which could often be accused of being morally and legally corrupt, this places a lone female at greater risk.

Have you considered the possibility of being called up for national military service if you are officially registered in Thailand ?

Its nothing to do with raising the handlebars..... The Thai shop is wrong.

Its a suspension adjustment. Depending on the model you can go from 'Full Lock' (no suspension) to a ‘Soft' setting and various degree’s between. On Cheaper models it may simply be a suspension ‘Lock' or suspension ‘Unlocked' setting. The effectiveness of your suspension depends on various factors such as air (it may need to be pumped up) and the quality of equipment itself. The ‘raising the handlebars’ information you were given is mostly likely a very poor translation and an very over simplified over simplification of what he front suspension does.

Not sure if that's still so, but in the old days MBK sellers would only offer half of what they can sell it for. So for example they can sell it for 30k, they would offer 15k. A very lousy deal. I’ve sold numerous phones at MBK in the past - its not quite as horrific as you point out, certainly not ‘half the price’.... but there is a negotiation and you can always walk away. Basically, I put something on Facebook Market Place and if it doesn’t well within a week or so, at a convenient time I go to MBK and sell it for there... usually for just a little bit less than my intended selling price... Thus: If I couldn’t sell the iPhone 13 Pro-Max 256gb for about 32,000 to 35,000 baht on Facebook Market Place, I’d let it go for 30,000 baht at MBK. (thats the usually prices I’d expect for this item). Defiantly agree, the best option is to miss out a middle-man... Hauk and Bank are just another reseller as you’ll find at MBK... but at MBK there is a lot of choice. Still worth giving H&B a try, but their FB page already highlights they are selling the same phone for 33,900 baht... so I very much doubt they’ll offer more than 33,000 baht... as with all the shops, they’ll want their mark-up. This: FB market place remains the best place to sell the phone IF the OP wants to get the most reasonable price. Taking Photos and Posting them is certainly less effort than physically going to a shop and trying to sell your item.

I think the Dr. was perhaps stuck between a rock and a hard place. I would certainly have liked to have spoken to someone in a position of decision making power and asked for an explanation of the discrimination. I would want to look the decision maker in the eye and ask them why my health is threatened by their discriminatory decision - the reality is such people would never be available to face those directly impacted by their discriminatory decisions, they are protected by ‘face’ and the ‘kraeng-Jai’ of those subservient to them. There is the additional facet that the Op was particularly unwell, vulnerable and certainly in no position to handle any other discussion than that of his symptoms and his immediate medical care. This hospital and its policy makers have failed in their duty of care to provide medical services. I very much suspect that the refusal to provide the Op with medication the Dr wanted to prescribe to him may actually be an illegal action. ------ It is this such behavior that drags Thailand down and continues to prevent it from evolving beyond a developing nation.... Perhaps this is what ’Thainess’ is.... It is the absence of consideration hidden behind a thin veil of platitude and the Thai smile...

You judgment is clearly overwhelmingly muddied - he was refused medication he needed - how is that possibly pathetic. IF this were true the Op would not have received any discriminatory treatment at a time of medical need - he would have been treated fairly and allowed to pay for the medication he was told he needed. No where in this thread has the Op stated he shouted or lost his temper - You have projected something which did not exist to created a strawman fallacy supporting your false impression that there must be a reason for the discriminatory treatment against the Op. Oh gawd.... the highly unimaginative and wholly moronic “IF you don’t like it go elsewhere” response, the go-to response of fools who lack the intelligence to post a valid counter argument to justify the negative.

I agree... IF he [Neeranam] looks non-Thai, by other Thai’s he will always be considered a foreigner with Thai Citizenship. There are also area’s of ‘Legal’ discrimination. For example, my Son is Thai (and British), he will face conscription, but he cannot become an officer in the Thai Armed Forces because one of his parents is not Thai.

Apples trade valuations are always very low compared to what the Op can sell for directly (to a shop or privately).

The obvious answer which will get the most people and probably the best price, but also expose you to a handful of 'tyre kickers’ is FaceBook Market Place. But... You’ve mentioned you don’t want to do that.... and I agree, it takes a certain amount of patience to deal with all the silly questions most of which are in the body of the Sale Post itself !!!.... That said, I have found FB market place to be a successful tool in the past and have sold phones and watches etc (but only when selling and meeting in person - there is too much scope for a scam when posting an item). I currently have my Smart Watch for sale on FB Market Place.... at least until I go to sell it physically... .... The base place for this (and the answer to your question) is MBK - This is were there are the most resellers located in one area. You won’t quite get the same price as selling on FB market place and they too can be a hassle as you get your time wasted by some people who take the phone, open it, turn it on, test it, then lowball you... So getting a decent price still involves ’shopping around’ a little to fund a stall which is being reasonable (I think they often rely on the seller either being gullible or lazy - which is why I think FB market place is the better option).

There is no reservation of funds - foreigners pay, the hospitals profit. None of the treatment is subsidised by the government and the drugs are in ample supply. You have presented no reasonable justification here. Agreed, the Op has not tried to blame the Doctor who was under instructions. It is illegal for any Hospital in Thailand not to render ‘life saving care’. What you are suggesting is that any hospital could refuse a patient based on nationality which could potential cost them their lives... That said, this wasn’t life saving care - but the hospital agreed to treat the Op, then turned the tables on him when it came to providing medication. That is clearly outrageously and very wrong. Agreed, many of us would go straight to a Private Institution, however, when quite unwell we may need to go to the closest. Knowing we may be treated poorly based solely on nationality should be alarming for all of us reading this. Excellent - but how would you have felt halfway through the treatment had they turned around and said “Sorry, its policy that we cannot give Farangs this treatment”... I’m sure you’d be quite angry.

I quite agree.... I don’t think it was racist, but its definitely discrimination against someone unwell. Any possible agreement is somewhat moot as it pertains to free treatment. The Op was paying for treatment and prepared to pay for medication which was not expensive nor in undersupply.

Yes… the Dr. Being the authority…. Having further oversight is what surprises me in this case. I’d be surprised if any medication I’ve been prescribed in the past requires higher authority than a Dr’s signature.

Molnupiravir used to be expensive at 8000-10,000 baht per course but is now approx 600 baht per course. No sensible reason to block the Op from receiving this.

Agreed... thats also a possibility.... One thing which is somewhat odd in the story.... Since when does a ‘big boss’ get involved with a Dr’s diagnosis and prescription ??? It does seem very strange that a Dr would prescribe something only for the ‘Big Boss’ to say no... at which point in the proceedings was he consulted etc ?... Note: (as already pointed out) IF the mediation was Favipiravir is neither expensive or in short supply in Thailand, so the response is just strange.

IF we’re going to get into the nuts and bots of it, the policy still ‘could’ have been racist... ... Would a Burmese, Vietnamese, Cambodian etc also be refused medication from the hospital in the same situation or was it as the op stated?... ‘She [the treating medical practitioner] then told me that her boss had told her that she could NOT dispense these drugs to Falangs regardless of their medical condition' Thus, what is meant by ‘Falang / Farang’ in this instance ??? white foreigners? ... or was the Dr simplifying the statement and instead of highlighting ’non-Thais’ used the work ‘farang’ (a world I very rarely here educated professionals use - perhaps the Dr’s handle of English was not as strong). .... OR... did the Dr. actually state ’non-Thai’s'.... and the the Op has since stated ‘Falang’....?? Where language is a barrier, there is plenty of scope for variance in the underlying wording, meaning and facts of the policy the hospital was operating under.

Agree with all the comments here... Well done to the young chap. I also strongly agree with the comments on here regarding training for all - this example should drive the message home to all authorities, schools and people in positions of decision making power that water safety and first aid skills are an essential facet of education and really need to be implemented in the curriculum across the nation.... .... not just Thailand, all countries.... And then... Add road safety and driver / rider education while they’re at it, electrical safety too... .... So many unnecessary deaths can be avoided with education alone.