Phichit Hospital Admits 'Mistakes' Killed Boy

[webfact]

Phichit hospital admits 'mistakes' killed boy

By The Nation

A Phichit hospital director yesterday admitted that the medical staff had made mistakes and were responsible for the death of a nineyearold boy being treated for severe appendicitis, and has ordered an investigation.

Hospital director Dr Prajuab Mongkholsiri, however, deterred allegations from the boy's parents that the nurse Thanakrit Phimaksorn had tried to assault the kid after he spat at her while demanding to know why his treatment was delayed. "The nurse just covered his mouth to prevent saliva from hitting her," he claimed.

The doctor also admitted that the child was misdiagnosed, which resulted in a delay in treatment. The treatment was further delayed because the hospital needed to wait for an Xray machine to be delivered from a private hospital.

He dismissed the parents' complaint, filed with the Paveena Hongsakul Foundation, that the hospital staff had assaulted the patient. "I don't think there's anybody in the hospital who would do such a thing," he said, adding that he had ordered an investigation.

-- The Nation 2011-02-26

[kuffki]

Amazing, a 9 year old kid has died in the hospital with something that is sooooooooooo easily treatable and all the hospital cares about is "false" allegations.

The fact that the staff have no idea at all and baby died in their care seems to be not really such a big issue.

At least doc has admitted the mistake, yet all the excuses under the sun to point fingers.

[TAWP]

Is the allegations about abuse corroborated?

[MAJIC]

A Hospital wihout some sophisticated,hi tec, Diagnostic Machinery is one thing,but a Hospital without an Xray Machine? is beyond belief! ,and dosn't deserve to be called a Hospital.

RIP

Edited February 26, 2011 by MAJIC

[jdinasia]

Is the allegations about abuse corroborated?

No

While errors DO happen (and the hospital correctly admitted the misdiagnosis) it would be unusual for a nurse to assault an ill patient even if he were a spitter. I work closely with many Thai nurses and so far they have all been very even tempered and very professional.

[jayjay0]

A Hospital wihout some sophisticated,hi tec, Diagnostic Machinery is one thing,but a Hospital without an Xray Machine? is beyond belief! ,and dosn't deserve to be called a Hospital.

RIP

I concur with you.

Not being up on these things but is a x ray machine really needed to diagnose appendicitis.

[Bagwan]

Appendicitis is far more common in the younger age groups than others. It is virtually unknown in infants. Any doctor worth his salt would know this and it should have been in the forefront of his thoughts when making a diagnosis. Since it is quite common for a surgical procedure to find that the appendix is not the source of a problem, it seems to me that in those cases an x-ray was not carried out before the decision to go ahead with surgery was taken. Better safe than sorry? This poses the question of why wasn't a procedure initiated in this case when any delay could certainly have serious repercussions. Was the doctor afraid that he would have to answer to the hospital management if unnecessary surgery had been performed and that a dose of antibiotics would have cleared up the problem? Was not the interests of his patient put above all others?

I have to assume that since a x-ray machine was awaited, to be handed over by a private hospital, that it would be a secondhand one.  While per se there is nothing wrong in this, it does raise questions about the funding and equipping of public access hospitals. How many x-ray machines would 12 tons of gold provide? It seems to me that the private hospitals carry out expensive unnecessary tests,  admit patients on the slightest pretext  and dispense medications like Dolly Mixtures, yet the public hospitals have progressed not too far away from using leeches. As with most things in Thailand, money talks and opens doors.  

This being Thailand I am of the opinion that the hospital Director is the last person to head up an inquiry and that an independent body should carry out a full investigation. Given that the Director has said that he doesn't believe anybody employed at the hospital would attack a patient one might wonder why an inquiry has been set up. I have no doubt that a gofer has been sent down to the local D-I-Y store to purchase a large can of whitewash.

[Senia]

Yes the x ray machine got me too . Maybe they didn't see the urgency in the matter and it was an X ray machine for that department ?

But I wonder if anyone else has gone through what I am going through now. I feel that I am being over- medicated, over tested than a regular Thai patient because I an a foreigner . But on second thought.............. maybe Thai's also get the same treatment .

[calbears]

It's a BS to say that x-ray is needed to make diagnosis of appendicitis. Only 9-10% of the cases can be discerned on x-ray. In fact the best way to confirm physicians' suspicion of appendicitis is ultrasound, and nothing else can be done as quickly and conveniently. Most of the time, clinical signs and symptoms are enough to make a diagnosis of appendicitis. In rare cases, appendicitis patients do not have localized and severe pain, so they tend to let it worsen to the later stage of the disease before they go see doctor. The outcome is not very good for these patients.

[MAJIC]

A Hospital wihout some sophisticated,hi tec, Diagnostic Machinery is one thing,but a Hospital without an Xray Machine? is beyond belief! ,and dosn't deserve to be called a Hospital.

RIP

I concur with you.

Not being up on these things but is a x ray machine really needed to diagnose appendicitis.

The doctor also admitted that the child was misdiagnosed, which resulted in a delay in treatment. The treatment was further delayed because the hospital needed to wait for an Xray machine to be delivered from a private hospital.

Judging by the Doctors comments above,It would seem so, in this particular case.

[Bagwan]

Yes the x ray machine got me too . Maybe they didn't see the urgency in the matter and it was an X ray machine for that department ?

But I wonder if anyone else has gone through what I am going through now. I feel that I am being over- medicated, over tested than a regular Thai patient because I an a foreigner . But on second thought.............. maybe Thai's also get the same treatment .

At the risk of ruffling the doctor's feathers, to which scant attention should given, ask what medications/treatment he/she advises. The operative word here is advises. You are consulting him/her for their opinions. You do not have to follow their advice if you feel uncomfortable about it. Go see another doctor - and do not tell them you are seeking a second opinion. If you are truly sceptical, or paranoid, see other doctors and select what the majority go with. A very well qualified doctor who I enjoy a close relationship with, and with whom I consult professionally, tacitly agrees with me that there some Thai doctors who are a positive danger to their patients.

Remind the doctor that you are not Thai and that you will not be impressed if half a dozen different coloured pills are prescribed. Make the point that the only medication necessary is the one that attacks the ailment. Clear that up and the symptoms disappear of their own accord. Many Thais believe that if several courses of medication are prescribed then the doctor is competent - and vice versa. My friendly doctor also considers it within the bounds of possibility (probability?) that unless a doctor generates sufficient income for the hospital then their contracts may well be not renewed.

You are responsible for your body and not the doctor, so act accordingly. Ask as many questions as you feel necessary and if sensible answers are not forthcoming, get your ailing self out of there. Although I am wary about some of the content that Google throws up it does give some indication about what questions to ask and whether treatments are apposite.

Bad grammar corrected

Edited February 28, 2011 by Bagwan