Irishman’s life hangs by a thread after mosquito bite in Thailand

[gearbox]

7 minutes ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

Definitely correct - at 70 they grow heaps - at 75 they escalate - at 80 you are 'not welcome'.

Some guarantee that if you start before 60/65 they will cover you til 90 - but they dont say what the premiums are going to be.

I have a 'medical fund' in a bank account - all it is for is if there is a medical emergency - I put in 100K to start and top up each year.

The annual premiums you pay are wasted if you dont claim - but if you put it in a 'fund' account, it stays there waiting for you to use it.

I also use that bank account for the annual extensions - I have another bank account for day to day usage. 

Plus I have car insurance with accident coverage that includes unlimited hospital treatment after an accident.

 

Back to this bloke - if he had no medical insurance coverage for his holiday, then I am sorry, but that is on him - he made a bad decision.

I do wish him all the best and hope he recovers OK and very soon. 

Could you provide a link to the accident insurance with unlimited coverage? That would be a good option to consider if they do pay out.

[Guderian]

14 hours ago, Chris Daley said:

Thailand still struggling with basic illnesses.  Probably die of piles in this country.

 

Noooooo! The GF's just been diagnosed with haemorrhoids, lol!

[Confuscious]

Common fault in all these threads about incidents/accidents is being hospitalised in an expensive private hospital.

I go every month to the Military Hospital to do a checkup and medicine prescription (blood analyse; X-ray; 2 doctors consultation and 6 medicines) and pay about 2,500 baht for everything.
Last time, about 1 year ago, I was rushed to the Military Hospital in a critical condition, and stayed there for 9 days.
4 days ICU.
Total bill: 18,000 baht.

And for the records, I am alone and don't have a "walking translator" with me.

If you are not sure that an insurance will cover you, REFUSE treatment in a private hospital and ask to be transferred to a Government hospital.
If you are still able to speak, tell the hospital that you REFUSE to be treated there and ask to be transferred to a Government hospital.

Just my 2 cents into this discussion.

[TroubleandGrumpy]

3 minutes ago, gearbox said:

Could you provide a link to the accident insurance with unlimited coverage? That would be a good option to consider if they do pay out.

 

What are the different types of car insurance in Thailand? (roojai.com)

 

[TroubleandGrumpy]

2 minutes ago, Confuscious said:

Common fault in all these threads about incidents/accidents is being hospitalised in an expensive private hospital.
I go every month to the Military Hospital to do a checkup and medicine prescription (blood analyse; X-ray; 2 doctors consultation and 6 medicines) and pay about 2,500 baht for everything.
Last time, about 1 year ago, I was rushed to the Military Hospital in a critical condition, and stayed there for 9 days.
4 days ICU.
Total bill: 18,000 baht.
And for the records, I am alone and don't have a "walking translator" with me.
If you are not sure that an insurance will cover you, REFUSE treatment in a private hospital and ask to be transferred to a Government hospital.
If you are still able to speak, tell the hospital that you REFUSE to be treated there and ask to be transferred to a Government hospital.

Just my 2 cents into this discussion.

 

One of the first things we did here after settling in to the hosue, was to visit the local Military Hospital and register as a 'patient' while making an appointment to see a specialist (they have after hours appointments - at a reasonable cost).  Easy to do and well worth it in the long run.   

[ChaiyaTH]

This is when one wished to have paid the 50$ monthly safetywing insurance. He would be covered for 250,000$.

 

[SunsetT]

6 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

Get yourself to a District Hospital if you need care for anything serious, failing that, an Amphur government hospital that is close to the District Hospital. District Hospitals have some of the best doctors in the country, you may not see them immediately but you will if they are required. Districts often use student doctors to treat patients but that's part of their medical training, behind them is a strong layer of very capable doctors. The only thing that's better is a University Hospital, especially if it's a medical training University such as CMU, that's as good as it gets anywhere. Doctors at University hospitals often put in hours at the private hospitals such as Bangkok Hospital, just for the extra money, most as Associate or Assistant Professor level.

What is a 'District' hospital, and whats the difference from an 'amphur' government hospital as u refer to it?

[Peterphuket]

Maybe we can start a hospital by our self with this terrible prices.

Of course I'm joking but supposed we can do and have affordable prices we will get all the farangs....

Yes I know a bit difficult when you need treatment and the hospital is in BKK and you stay in Phuket.

[VinnieK]

What happens if the family refuses to pay the hospital?

Are they gonna put him in hospital jail?

What does Thai law says?

I bet he was taken there against his will (or unconscious), like many others..

I despise private health-scare.

Socialist af on this one. 😁

 

 

[Shwaman]

As most folks know , there are four strains. I picked up one in Cambodia 10 years ago. It played itself out in Chiang Mai over 2 1/2 weeks over Christmas.  The most distressing part is it's biphasic nature. Haemophasic is another level altogether . My heart goes out to this chap while others can only yek yek about insurance. Really? Need to feel superior? Geez. Could happen to anyone, anytime. 

  And as the more cynical/ aware of us know insurance companies have a plethora of loopholes to avoid paying anyway. Give the guy a break.

[Sheryl]

46 minutes ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

 

Back to this bloke - if he had no medical insurance coverage for his holiday, then I am sorry, but that is on him - he made a bad decision.

I do wish him all the best and hope he recovers OK and very soon. 

 

As per the linked story, he had insurance.

 

But expiring in his day of departure (a common arrangement) and most unfortunately that is exactly when he fell severely ill.

[GammaGlobulin]

5 hours ago, MrJ2U said:

Be great if Thailand could subsidise the dengue vaccine. At 5,000-6,000 (baht)a shot it's out of reach for most people in Thailand. 

Dengvaxia is only recommended in those who have previously had dengue fever or populations in which most people have been previously infected.[10]

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue_vaccine

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

5 hours ago, MrJ2U said:

Be great if Thailand could subsidise the dengue vaccine. At 5,000-6,000 (baht)a shot it's out of reach for most people in Thailand. 

Philippines[edit]

The 2017 dengue vaccine controversy in the Philippines involved a vaccination program run by the Philippines Department of Health (DOH).^[23] The DOH vaccinated schoolchildren with Sanofi Pasteur's CYD-TDV (Dengvaxia) dengue vaccine. Some of the children who received the vaccine had never been infected by the dengue virus before. The program was stopped when Sanofi Pasteur advised the government that the vaccine could put previously uninfected people at a somewhat higher risk of a severe case of dengue fever.^[28] A political controversy erupted over whether the program was run with sufficient care and who should be held responsible for the alleged harm to the vaccinated children.^[30]

 

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue_vaccine}

 

[MrJ2U]

5 hours ago, FinChin67 said:

Does that really work? Thinking of getting one. Which type or vaccine and does it work against all variants?

 

Reply to myself, worth reading:

 

https://www.thaitravelclinic.com/blog/vaccineinfo/dengue-vaccine-for-foreigners-travelers-in-thailand-should-i-get-it-update-2023.html

Good reading.

 

Unfortunately Dengue is pretty widespread in our area of the Northeast.

 

Prices in the article are much better what we were quoted in Sakon Nakhon. I'll probably make an appointment next time I'm in Bangkok.

 

Thanks. 

[GammaGlobulin]

1 hour ago, ravip said:

Have you already started this scheme.

Please let us know the details. For example, do you have only a decent supply of hospital prescribed morphine or any other additional medications? - some of us here might want to do the same.

 

Please check with someone like Sherlock.

 

The hospitals do not prescribe morphine without a very good reason.

 

 

[MrJ2U]

4 hours ago, brianthainess said:

Is that price at a private hospital like Bangkok hospital? Do Thais have to pay that price at a government hospital?

Quote at the new "Prince" hospital in Sakon Nakhon.

 

In Bangkok it's under 4,000 at Mahidol. 

[MrJ2U]

12 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Dengvaxia is only recommended in those who have previously had dengue fever or populations in which most people have been previously infected.[10]

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue_vaccine

 

 

They have newer version.  I'm not sure if it's the same protocall. 

Edited December 15, 2023 by MrJ2U

[dddave]

18 hours ago, ukrules said:

I've never seen a travel insurance policy which is linked to flight dates but maybe that's a thing. Not very helpful if you get ill on the way to the airport - like the taxi crashes - 5 hours of treatment then they cut you off because you're holiday has ended. Strange.

My friend was hit by a car in Pattaya and subsequently died after 6 weeks hospitalization.  He had an active travel insurance policy "Good for $500,000 coverage"  The roadblocks that insurance company put up to paying anything was amazing, like demanding professionally translated daily medical records and all charges within 24 hours: a virtual impossibility.  When all was said and done, of more than US $100,000 medical expenses, they agreed to reimburse his family only $20,000 and they had to threaten a lawsuit to even get that. 

[MrJ2U]

10 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Philippines[edit]

The 2017 dengue vaccine controversy in the Philippines involved a vaccination program run by the Philippines Department of Health (DOH).^[23] The DOH vaccinated schoolchildren with Sanofi Pasteur's CYD-TDV (Dengvaxia) dengue vaccine. Some of the children who received the vaccine had never been infected by the dengue virus before. The program was stopped when Sanofi Pasteur advised the government that the vaccine could put previously uninfected people at a somewhat higher risk of a severe case of dengue fever.^[28] A political controversy erupted over whether the program was run with sufficient care and who should be held responsible for the alleged harm to the vaccinated children.^[30]

 

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue_vaccine}

 

Sounds almost like Anutin also ran the Philipine's Department of Health. 

 

I believe Qdenga, the newer vaccine has positive results. 

[GammaGlobulin]

5 hours ago, it is what it is said:

 

have you been in an ICU in a modern hospital? the level of care is, frankly, awesome. such a cost in a private hospital doesn't surprise me.

 

The cost is not worth it for old guys.

Staying alive at any cost is cost prohibitive for the average citizen.

 

Of course, if one might be a Noam Chomsky, then spare no cost to prolong his life until the very last possible second.

 

Even in his last moments, I am sure we will hear yet another word of wisdom from the ancient one.

 

For me, however, I do not want to be kept alive by artificial means of any sort.

 

Antibiotics are cheap and highly effective, for now.  But any other artificial means to prolong my life is not welcome.

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

18 minutes ago, dddave said:

My friend was hit by a car in Pattaya and subsequently died after 6 weeks hospitalization.  He had an active travel insurance policy "Good for $500,000 coverage"  The roadblocks that insurance company put up to paying anything was amazing, like demanding professionally translated daily medical records and all charges within 24 hours: a virtual impossibility.  When all was said and done, of more than US $100,000 medical expenses, they agreed to reimburse his family only $20,000 and they had to threaten a lawsuit to even get that. 

 

There is no longer any humanity left in human beings.

 

Hopefully, it will get better after the nuclear winter, come springtime.

 

 

[Modern Coding]

2 hours ago, animatic said:

 

You don’t get bit in taxi on way to airport and get deathly ill before you arrive. It’s days before flashing eyes and then ‘Bone Break Day’.

 

Article has never stated he got bit in the taxi, it just says the man was in the taxi when trouble occurs.

Normally, it takes a couple of days after being bit before the symptoms appear; he might have been bit days before, who knows... With journalism à la Bild Zeitung like they do at Thaiger, you never get to know the whole story...

[Photoguy21]

8 hours ago, hotchilli said:

But a money maker.... private Thai hospitals are a business.

All hospitals are a business

[Mike Lister]

1 hour ago, SunsetT said:

What is a 'District' hospital, and whats the difference from an 'amphur' government hospital as u refer to it?

In Chiang Mai there is a District Hospital that is located in Muang Chiang Mai, at 750 beds it is the largest government hospital in the province. Many of the Chiang Mai Amphoes have their own hospital which are much smaller in size and have more limited facilities, they send their more difficult cases to the District Hospital, Nakorn Ping. Amphoe Mae Rim, Amphoe Ban Chet Yot, Amphoe San Sai and Amphoe Changpuek have their own hospitals. Not all Amphoe's have their own hospital, it depends on their size and wealth. Except Hospital Districts don't map onto provinces exactly, some hospital districts serve multiple provinces.

 

In addition there are private hospitals such as Bangkok Hospital, RAM, Rajavej, Lanna and Mccormick.

 

Lastly, there is the University Hospital that is also located in Chiang Mai Muang, Maharaj Nakorn or Suandok. This is where the very difficult cases end up and is where the District hospital refers patients it can't successfully treat. The semi-private wing of the University Hospital is called Sriphat.

 

 

[kwilco]

yet more bizarre reporting on this poor man

 

"rare mosquito bite" - what kind of  reporting is that?

9 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

Why intubate for Dengue, I've never heard of that before?

 

The poor man has been made captive by a private hospital, Dengue is recoverable but his pocket book never will, not where he is.

Do the hopital not know or has he got  hemorrhagic Dengue which is well documented in Thailand.

 

Dengue can be fatal but so can Thai healthcare

[Mike Lister]

55 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

All hospitals are a business

All private hospitals are a business, government hospitals are not.

[WDSmart]

About 20 years ago, when I first came to Thailand, I contracted Dengue fever in Koh Samui. My most intense symptom was that I slept for about 20 hours a day for about a week. I did not go into a hospital and stayed in my rented cabin on the beach. After that, I felt groggy most of the time for another week or two. But eventually, all the symptoms passed, and I was well again.

I hope that turns out to be the same for this fellow. 

[Mike Lister]

32 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

In Chiang Mai there is a District Hospital that is located in Muang Chiang Mai, at 750 beds it is the largest government hospital in the province. Many of the Chiang Mai Amphoes have their own hospital which are much smaller in size and have more limited facilities, they send their more difficult cases to the District Hospital, Nakorn Ping. Amphoe Mae Rim, Amphoe Ban Chet Yot, Amphoe San Sai and Amphoe Changpuek have their own hospitals. Not all Amphoe's have their own hospital, it depends on their size and wealth. Except Hospital Districts don't map onto provinces exactly, some hospital districts serve multiple provinces.

 

In addition there are private hospitals such as Bangkok Hospital, RAM, Rajavej, Lanna and Mccormick.

 

Lastly, there is the University Hospital that is also located in Chiang Mai Muang, Maharaj Nakorn or Suandok. This is where the very difficult cases end up and is where the District hospital refers patients it can't successfully treat. The semi-private wing of the University Hospital is called Sriphat.

 

 

 

Perhaps a better way to describe the hospital hierarchy is that the larger district hospitals (sometimes referred to as provincial hospitals), are Category A hospitals.

 

The next level down is General Hospitals or Class S and M1

 

The third level is Community Hospitals or Classes M2 F1 F2 and F3

 

A list is linked below.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hospitals_in_Thailand

[Frankie baby]

Its time the Thai authorities looked into the great hospital rip-offs, they just seem to charge whatever they want. I wonder what the insurance companies have to say on these exorbitant medical bills for sometimes , something so basic?  

[Mike Lister]

1 minute ago, Frankie baby said:

Its time the Thai authorities looked into the great hospital rip-offs, they just seem to charge whatever they want. I wonder what the insurance companies have to say on these exorbitant medical bills for sometimes , something so basic?  

Private Hospitals are privately owned and operated, nobody is forced to seek treatment there, they can charge what they want and the government wont care.