British citizen stranded in Thai hospital with a 400,000 baht plea to escape

[Liverpool Lou]

28 minutes ago, bob smith said:

Legally, there is nothing the hospital can do to stop a patient walking off the premises. 

And, just as legally, there is nothing the patient can do in that situation to stop the hospital calling the police for doing, or trying to do, a runner on a bill.

[bob smith]

6 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

And, just as legally, there is nothing the patient can do in that situation to stop the hospital calling the police for doing, or trying to do, a runner on a bill.

And if you dont have the money in your bank to pay after you have received treatment? Off to the gulag is it? I dont think so, Lou.

[kimamey]

2 hours ago, quake said:

 

But the best bit was this.

 

 

Got to laugh at that comment !!!!!!!!!!!. 

 

 

 

The best thing about Thailand is being able to wash with the hose, in my opinion.

[kimamey]

1 hour ago, Barnet1900 said:

Government hospitals lack many things compared to private versions but the picture he's painting is utter bs.

 

I've been in Red Cross hospitals here and the medical staff were great. 

 

Complete tosser

 

I've never been to that hospital but I've visited friends in others and they weren't that bad.

[kimamey]

1 hour ago, bob smith said:

Thats a matter of opinion and you are entitled to yours. Try proving that in a court of law though. Not a chance big bird!

 

I don't know about Tai law but in the UK and most western countries I would assume, it would possibly be illegal. Emergency treatment in the UK is free but after that you have to pay and I've seen cases where people have been taken to court. It's not complicated really. You've had a service that you haven't paid for. 

 

Of course this is Thailand and he's a foreigner so it's probably more complicated. I suspect the police would be involved early on and they'd see a chance of some money if they played things right. Even if he doesn't have enough money now they would probably guess that he raise it somehow and they'd want their share. After that iI think he would be stopped at the airport. Then it doesn't matter what you think the law is as that will be decided by officials at the airport.

 

He might get away with it but it's a big risk. He could try saying " Well Bob Smith said it would be ok"

[kimamey]

1 hour ago, bob smith said:

The fact is, any and all emergency cases admitted to almost any hospital worldwide are the responsibility of that hospital until discharged by a doctor. 
 

The alternative would be to have hordes of sick people dying in hospital foyers because they didn’t have the money for the emergency treatment that could have saved their lives. This is a predicament that hospitals actively try to avoid.

 

I don't know what the situation is here but an emergency doesn't just stop and you walk out fit and well. There's usually non emergency treatment afterwards.

[lordgrinz]

These situations should just be handled by sending the bill for emergency treatment and repatriation to the foreigners home country, if not paid, then force all who come from that country to show proof of insurance covering their stay before boarding. Let the foreign countries deal with insurance issues, or for any repayment to their own governments.

[Felt 35]

Here there was not much pity and find . In my opinion, a patient in that hospital should be paid and then a free flight home.

Felt

[Ralf001]

5 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There has to be a first time that a condition is discovered so, yes, it could be said that it came out of nowhere if there weren't any symptoms previously but the article doesn't say that leukemia has been diagnosed, his mate just said it could be that and that he is very anaemic.

 

Whilst I agree there has to be a first time diagnosed.

 

But first time renders a tourist hopitalised with blood leaking from his body ?.

 

Smell like BS to me... and will be released fit to fly in a few days..... yeah right.

Edited November 30, 2023 by Ralf001

[SAFETY FIRST]

8 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

aggravated by shocking conditions in the government-run medical facility.

 

Penson’s best friend, Ben Page, paints a harrowing picture of the hospital’s conditions, describing it as a place resembling a war-torn zone.

I don't think there's any need to be nasty regarding Thailand's medical facilities. 

 

Over the 25 years I've been to many hospitals in Thailand, my children were born here and every couple of years I need to renew my offshore medical, always found the hospitals better than Australia. 

 

I've visited the government hospital many times over the years, they look OK, clean and professional. 

 

By the way, travel insurance will get you a nicer hospital, you won't have to beg or open a go fund me page. 

 

Edited November 30, 2023 by SAFETY FIRST

[SAFETY FIRST]

7 hours ago, Barnet1900 said:

Government hospitals lack many things compared to private versions but the picture he's painting is utter bs.

 

I've been in Red Cross hospitals here and the medical staff were great. 

 

Complete tosser

Agree 

[SAFETY FIRST]

8 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Penson’s best friend, Ben Page, paints a harrowing picture 

This 'Ben Page' seems like a dope. 

 

 

Edited November 30, 2023 by SAFETY FIRST

[thaibeachlovers]

8 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The British citizen’s dire situation is compounded by the absence of travel insurance, a decision that now haunts him and his friends. Urged by his friend, Page, to secure coverage before departure, Penson’s hesitation due to a pre-existing knee injury has left him facing astronomical medical bills.

Here we go again. Self inflicted injury, and hopes other people will bail him out.

 

8 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

There’s no toilet roll, you just wash with a hose.”

Ah, the arrogance of a foreigner that denigrates the locals for being "primitive", despite a bum gun being superior to wiping one's nether region with paper.

[Ralf001]

13 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Here we go again. Self inflicted injury.

 

 

 

How is cancer (Alleged) a self inflicted injury ?

[webfact]

Another black eye for Thai tourism with sick UK man’s ‘horrific’ plight in Phuket on world media 
by James Morris and Son Nguyen

 

Amid the beauty and tranquillity of glorious Phuket, a sick 42-year-old British man, Dean Penson, endures a nightmare in a public ward of a Thai government-run hospital where people have died nearby and where his condition is frighteningly fragile. It is another black eye for Thailand’s tourism industry, which, for over a decade and a half, has seen successive governments dither and delay over a sensible proposal for a tourist levy to provide automatic emergency health insurance for all incoming tourists and other protections.

Harrowing tale of British tourist, Dean Penson, stranded in a Thai hospital in a nightmarish encounter with suspected leukaemia. His best friend paints a horrific picture of blood stains, needles strewn about and deaths nearby.

 

With the hospital bill soaring, friends launched a £10,000 emergency fund, which exposes Thailand’s problem with foreign tourist care. The story is a cautionary tale, demanding urgent government action on a promised tourist insurance levy.

Thailand’s tourism prospects, already suffering with low demand from China and cancelled flight slots, this week, were dealt another blow when a leading UK newspaper featured the plight of a severely debilitated British tourist in Phuket to raise emergency funds to pay for yet another hospital bill for a Western tourist in Thailand whose life is in peril. It comes just weeks after the new Minister of Tourism and Sports promised to expedite a long-awaited foreign tourism levy which would provide for a fund for stricken foreign tourists and universal emergency insurance cover, but which continues to be postponed by officials.

On the picturesque holiday island of Phuket, where vibrant beaches meet azure waters, a British holidaymaker’s paradise has turned into a living nightmare.

 

Full story: Thai Examiner.com 2023-12-01

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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[Lucky Bones]

Well, he obviously did his homework.

Quality indeed.

Give him a couple of pints & he'll brighten up.

Embarrasing.🙃🙃

 

[Lorry]

8 hours ago, ukrules said:

Is Leukemia something that comes on out of nowhere?

That's possible,  and not unusual at all.

 

But of course,  had he had travel insurance,  the first thing the insurance would do they would try very hard to find proof that he already had this condition before he left home.

If they are lucky the patient will die in the meantime.

Leukemia is a worst case for a travel insurance. Treatment can be extremely expensive,  repatriation - if possible at all - as well.

 

Some policies really cover only emergency treatment. 

But nowadays,  at least in rich continental European countries,  coverage usually extends until the patient is fit for transport. 

 

 

[Ralf001]

4 minutes ago, Lorry said:

That's possible,  and not unusual at all.

 

But of course,  had he had travel insurance,  the first thing the insurance would do they would try very hard to find proof that he already had this condition before he left home.

If they are lucky the patient will die in the meantime.

Leukemia is a worst case for a travel insurance. Treatment can be extremely expensive,  repatriation - if possible at all - as well.

 

 

 

 

 

From a UK newspaper....

 

 

Seems his "condition" is not actually that serious.

[Dukeleto]

10 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

 

 

It's only 10,000 pounds.

 

Might I suggest gosellakidney.com

It’s unlikely it’s worth much!

[Dukeleto]

10 hours ago, bob smith said:

Legally, there is nothing the hospital can do to stop a patient walking off the premises. 

I am pretty sure in Thailand if he choose to walk out without paying the police would be around to pick home up or detained at the airport until payment was settled. This is not the UK.

[damo1967]

11 hours ago, bignok said:

Idiot.

100% idiot.

Why should I help an absolute 1d1ot?  Leave him where he is!  If he passes.. then he passes.. no big deal.. 1 less 1d1ot in the world.

What happens to the excess of money raised?  Will he have a p1ss-up back in UK with the extra funds raised?

He gets 0thb from me!

[nickmondo]

12 hours ago, bignok said:

Idiot.

i totally agree.

[Skipalongcassidy]

3 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

 

How is cancer (Alleged) a self inflicted injury ?

Not having insurance is a self inflicted injury... it is selfish 

[Srikcir]

10 hours ago, bob smith said:

It does happen. It happened to my sister. 

Leukemia is a blood cancer that is a genetic mutation of DNA chromosomes transmitted through bone marrow. It is not a sudden cancer but if not detected, ie, through annual checkups. It might seem sudden only because one ignores  a number of physical signs that should indicate something is wrong with the body. It's remission can take years with expensive medications or ultimately million USD dollar stem cell treatment. It is why you need healthcare insurance.

[newbee2022]

Sure, bad luck. Leucaemia doesn't come over night.

But anyway the situation in small Thai hospitals could be stressful. It's well known that you have to come with clothes or bedsheets and that you have to share the room with males or females even. Family members will assist you and stay the night on a mattress under your bed.

Good that he has friends here and in UK to help him out to pay the bills.

It's good to publish this case in order to push people/visitors to have a proper insurance.🧑‍🎄

[tonypattaya]

10 hours ago, bignok said:

Theft

So the costs go on to other individuals, or curtail the money available to treat others. Not right!. 

[swm59nj]

If he has leukemia he needs to see an oncologist to begin treatment.  He should have had his own health insurance. And I’m sure he won’t begin treatment in Thailand. 
Blood soaked sheets?  Hospital is like a war zone?  I find that very hard to believe. 

[arick]

Something's not right  You don't get a 400,000 bill for blood work!   We have not seen the bill and we have not seen the blood soaked  sheets we gave not seen the war torn conditions of this hospital. 

Finally to my bitch of the day. I have been watching news for the last week CNN NBC BBC and I have never seen the story on any main media!

 

Enjoy your day I always like waking  up waking up in the morning and reading b******* especially coming from South end sea or <deleted> on Sea

 

 

[Badrabbit]

I've been to Vachira and it is a nightmare place, I would never want to go back there.

[arick]

1 minute ago, swm59nj said:

If he has leukemia he needs to see an oncologist to begin treatment.  He should have had his own health insurance. And I’m sure he won’t begin treatment in Thailand. 
Blood soaked sheets?  Hospital is like a war zone?  I find that very hard to believe. 

Maybe the test came back for the new strain of the new virus from China nobody wants to go around.