Why Did My Mother-in-Law Have to Die?

[JAYDOUBLEYOU]

My Thai Mother-in-Law is dead…passing away exactly two months ago, at the age of 67.

Worried at the sudden onset of her severe, inexplicable headaches, I sent her, (in the company of my wife), to a very well known Hospital in Rayong.

Two weeks later, she was dead.

The Hospital says its treatment was OK, even getting one other of their team of doctors to review the case.

BUT, I am asking, could they have done more?

Should they have done more?

Let me provide some relevant information, and then you can judge for yourselves.

On arrival at the hospital (April 18), she was referred to the ‘Brain Clinic’, where the consulting Doctor sent her for a Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan (MRI), and blood tests.

On reviewing the Scan Report, the doctor told my Mother-in-Law and wife that there was nothing serious to worry about.

He then prescribed several medications, and sent my wife and her mum home.

My wife’s report to me…”He’s not sure about why the headache, he thinks these tablets will fix things, and it cost 17,500B”.

HOWEVER, my Mother-in-Law was actually already in a potentially perilous situation.

The MRI Scan Report - showed clear evidence of “…acute lacunar infarctions”.

She had suffered a STROKE!

Why did the doctor not tell my wife and M-I-L this?

The Blood Tests also revealed that she was suffering from Leukocytosis, a blood disorder caused by an elevated White Blood Cell count, in her case 12,300 mcL.

A possible cause of this being a severe infection.

Again, during the consult, there was no mention of the irregular Blood Test results.

The question is, why?

Why did the doctor choose not to disclose ANY of these important pieces of information?

Was this a reasonable decision on his part?

Or was it a failure in communication, or worse, a failure of duty-of-care?

IF, instead of just being sent home, but rather she had been admitted to the Hospital that day (April 18); properly medicated and carefully monitored…could the damage at least have been contained?

And if so, would she still be alive today?

Sadly, we think YES…and that makes the death of my Mother-in-Law even more difficult for everyone to endure.

As my expertise is in the field of Education, I’m not qualified to offer a professional Medical opinion, so I forwarded the paperwork to a well-respected and highly experienced Australian Doctor.

He says that much more could have been done for my Mother-in-Law, and that we have every right to be very angry.

Having now viewed a copy of the original MRI Scan Report, he would have immediately informed everyone that Mum had suffered a stroke, and advised ALL of the seriousness of the situation.

Then organised:

(1) Urgent blood pressure control - under supervision at the Hospital

and

(2) An angiogram…to better determine the exact damage, and how best to contain it.

He would have also looked seriously at the irregular Blood Test results, with an option of starting a course of antibiotics.

This is just a complete travesty for my now deceased Mother-in-Law and her still grieving extended family.

What happened after my MIL was sent home with seemingly no cause for alarm, by the doctor from this elite Rayong Hospital?

Well, we all felt reassured, and just followed the directions on the various medications that she had been prescribed…all the time completely unaware that she was suffering the effects of a stroke, and possibly also a severe infection.

So, some two weeks later, it came as a complete shock when we could not wake her one morning. She was unconscious.

We immediately called an ambulance, and she was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit - back at the same well-established Rayong Hospital.

It was only THEN that we learned the serious results of her first MRI, and now, a new second MRI revealed even more bad news.

After two days in the ICU, my Mother-in-Law was still unconscious, and the Surgeon recommended a “last grasp of the straw” operation, to drain excess fluid from her brain.

There was only a very slim chance that this procedure would help my MIL regain consciousness, BUT, looking into my wife’s eyes left me with no other option then to approve the expensive operation.

Cost or not, I understood that my wife needed to do everything possible for her mum, otherwise it would burden her conscience forever.

Unfortunately, Mum post-operation did not regain consciousness, AND having now exhausted our budget (322,500 Baht), we were left with no option other than to transfer her to the nearby Rayong Public Hospital.

Where she sadly passed away just three days later.

Obviously, IF we knew there was such a BIG problem two weeks prior, we would have taken additional immediate action…certainly obtaining a second opinion - from a Specialist, and advice from anywhere and everywhere to prevent any further damage…and perhaps save my Mother-in-Law’s life.

So, I ask, did this well known, elite Rayong Hospital do enough?

Or, could they have done more on April 18, when my Mother-in-Law went to seek their best Medical help and intervention?

It has been a truly sad saga.

[steve down under]

Let me start by offering my condolences on your loss ,unfortunately in this day and age it seems that when someone reaches a certain age they aren't deemed worthy of receiving all the care that they should thereby freeing up resources to treat someone much younger who will probably have the financial ability to pay the ever exorbitant medical fees that are being charged by hospitals that are run more as a money making concern than as somewhere to help sick people to regain their health !

[questionsreplies]

i agree that 300k for nothing is so sad, but do you think that you were smart to trust any doctor in this country anyway ?

obviously not !

condolences.

[cyberfarang]

Let me start by offering my condolences on your loss ,unfortunately in this day and age it seems that when someone reaches a certain age they aren't deemed worthy of receiving all the care that they should thereby freeing up resources to treat someone much younger who will probably have the financial ability to pay the ever exorbitant medical fees that are being charged by hospitals that are run more as a money making concern than as somewhere to help sick people to regain their health !

Summed up perfectly. In England the national health service will sometimes write off patients over the age of 55 if certain very expensive drugs or procedures are required as a last resort to save their lives. In Thailand unless the private hospitals are assured their patients or their families have a bottomless pit of money, especially for the elderly that may need long term treatment, hospital care and medications, they too will just send them away and rid themselves of the responsibilities. Thai government hospitals will only provide the basics of medical care and will also not provide long term medical care for the elderly that may require expensive medications, especially if they feel a complete recovery is remote, and of course why medical insurance companies will either charge the elderly ridiculous premiums to insure them or refuse to insure the elderly at all.

Sorry to say but these are the harsh facts, the private hospitals are all about profits and the government hospitals are all about limited budgets. Bottom line, it`s all about money.

Edited July 6, 2016 by cyberfarang

[nottocus]

Doctor probably bribed someone to pass his degree…seriously.

[llso]

Given her age and the fact that she had already suffered a major stroke the Dr. might have concluded there was not much that could be done. Many times people can recover some depending on the type of stroke and severity. I would not let you and your wife beat yourselves up too much. It is possible that even with the best healthcare available she might not have survived.

[kannot]

Sorry for your loss (My own Father died a year ago) You have to remember you live in a country where basically " they dont give a sh1t" about you in anyway.

Despite comments on the UK NHS I found the healthcare EXCELLENT and in my Fathers last year the service was incredible with an ambulance coming almost weekly to take him into hospital (prostate cancer), and they live out in the back of nowhere, trip to hospital is 1 hour, They always arrived once called within an hour and I cannot thank or appreciate the service from them enough. Same with the doctor despite my Dad living in the back of beyond he often just called round to see how he was, unannounced.

Thailand does not have this system, its based on money and GREED I suspect many doctors are poorly trained and dole out drugs like theres no tomorrow to boost hospital profits, they dont give a sh1t about anything but that and even if they really screw up I doubt anything much would happen in anyway except to move them elsewhere for similar carnage..

I also suspect the Thais cannot afford and maybe even would not want to pay for a system that guarantees them a decent health service.

As mentioned bottom line is MONEY with NO gurantee of quality of care

[thaibeachlovers]

I have though long and hard how to answer your question, and can't in a sympathetic way, so apologies, but do not intend to cause more pain for you. I was in health care for many years so have experience, plus know friend with stroke.

The thing that strikes me is that you do not mention how she felt about living after a stroke. Had you discussed it with her prior to the stroke? Just because her daughter wanted to "save her" is not sufficient if she would not have wanted to live as a cripple, totally dependent on others. That is why I have discussed the subject with my wife and neither of us would want to live like that, so we will not try to prolong our lives if have a stroke.

Also, she does not appear to have had insurance, and your budget was very small. Could you have paid for

properly medicated and carefully monitored…could the damage at least have been contained?

The expense does not stop at life prolonged. After care and rehabilitation are ongoing and costly. Could your wife stop work to care totally for her, could you care for her totally?

[tifino]

looking to the future, I hope your wife doesn't eventually work out it was your fault for being the one deciding where MIL went to.

It won't matter that there was no way you could have foreseen the result, but that won't enter into the equation, as the Thai mind frameset doesn't work like that.

keep up the Research on the background of the Dr \the Hospital, and be prepared to come up with a 'blame' on someone in particular.

You won't be directly blaming someone outright, unless you do come into the blame-spotlight.

Just be prepared for it...

Best never bring the subject of why-why-why up with her, as it will just keep her brooding...

she has her Monk to turn to, which will be better than her mixing the bad feelings with her GFs, as it will invariably be turned around by one of them

- against you the falang

The Dr may well have held his tongue, for wanting to keep falang out of the know - as a falang finds it easier to critisise a Dr, than a meek Thai can

[farang000999]

Lawyer time.

[bermondburithesecond]

looking to the future, I hope your wife doesn't eventually work out it was your fault for being the one deciding where MIL went to.

It won't matter that there was no way you could have foreseen the result, but that won't enter into the equation, as the Thai mind frameset doesn't work like that.

keep up the Research on the background of the Dr \the Hospital, and be prepared to come up with a 'blame' on someone in particular.

You won't be directly blaming someone outright, unless you do come into the blame-spotlight.

Just be prepared for it...

Best never bring the subject of why-why-why up with her, as it will just keep her brooding...

she has her Monk to turn to, which will be better than her mixing the bad feelings with her GFs, as it will invariably be turned around by one of them

- against you the falang

The Dr may well have held his tongue, for wanting to keep falang out of the know - as a falang finds it easier to critisise a Dr, than a meek Thai can

Really??

[bamukloy]

looking to the future, I hope your wife doesn't eventually work out it was your fault for being the one deciding where MIL went to.

It won't matter that there was no way you could have foreseen the result, but that won't enter into the equation, as the Thai mind frameset doesn't work like that.

keep up the Research on the background of the Dr \the Hospital, and be prepared to come up with a 'blame' on someone in particular.

You won't be directly blaming someone outright, unless you do come into the blame-spotlight.

Just be prepared for it...

Best never bring the subject of why-why-why up with her, as it will just keep her brooding...

she has her Monk to turn to, which will be better than her mixing the bad feelings with her GFs, as it will invariably be turned around by one of them

- against you the falang

The Dr may well have held his tongue, for wanting to keep falang out of the know - as a falang finds it easier to critisise a Dr, than a meek Thai can

Really??

Would not be appropriate to assume all those things in the OPs case..

Of course, no one knows him and his partner and their relationship.

However he does have a point with the blame thing and being a farang. That is the one and only thing that really urks me about Thai/farang relationship.

I had seen my ex's family (and her) make some really shit decisions. You can know exactly what will happen most times but you are best saying nothing.

In the end i didnt even comment on any issue, as everything you say or suggest will be used to blame you..when the poo hits the fan.

Its just another unfortunate case of taking the good and bad i guess.

[NancyL]

My condolences to the OP. It's obvious he cared deeply for his MIL. From the way he wrote his post, it seems he wasn't at the hospital when his MIL had her MRI, so he wasn't part of the conversation between the doctor, his wife and his MIL. Nor does it seem that he saw the MRI report. They should have been given a written MRI report, in English, before they paid their bill. This is standard practice at private hospitals here. They may have had to ask for it. The words "acute lacunar infarctions " should have been troubling to anyone who could read English and use a smartphone with google to look up their meaning, but apparently they didn't investigate what was written on the MRI report.

From the wording of the OP, it seems he selected the hospital, but didn't go himself. So, he doesn't know what was said. Perhaps his wife simply told the doctor that his MIL wanted to go home. That she didn't want to spend limited family funds on hospitalizing her mother in this fancy hospital that her husband had selected.

Recently, I watched a drama play out between a foreign man and his Thai wife at "the best" hospital in Chiang Mai. The woman had just been examined and received the diagnosis that she had acute appendicitis and needed to have surgery ASAP. They'd been quoted a cost that apparently was a budget-buster. The man understood the gravity of the situation and couldn't understand why his wife was hesitating on authorizing immediate admission. Instead, they were having a conversation in the hospital lobby. At first she was insisting she just wanted to go home and rest a little bit and maybe she'd feel better tomorrow. When he insisted the condition wasn't going to improve and she did indeed need surgery, she suggested they go to the government hospital. Not Suan Dok, the University Hospital, but the little amphur hospital that was probably close to their home. He rolled his eyes, pointing out they probably didn't have a surgery there and would simply do a referral, slowing down the process or some "butcher" would attempt the surgery. But, she insisted saying she didn't want to spend their money and this was what she had to do to get free health care. The whole time, she was looking out the front window of the hospital and commenting on the people pulling up in fancy cars to drop off patients. She said "look a Mercedes. Look a BMW. This is not a place for me. You don't have the money."

I wonder if this factored into the thinking of the OP's wife and MIL.

[JAYDOUBLEYOU]

Please, let me firstly offer my personal thanks to ALL of you, the respondents who gave of your time to offer sympathy and words of kindness, as well as astute observations and commentary.

My late mother-in-law was a lovely lady, and always ‘in my corner’.

Just to summarise the sad saga:

(1) Due to the severity of my MIL’a headaches, it was my wife who suggested we by-pass the Public Hospital, and instead take her mum to the well-established Hospital for a professional and immediate assessment and diagnosis.

(2) We did not see a copy of the original MRI Report until two weeks later.

(3) THE issue, and question is, “If the consulting doctor at this hospital had taken more pro-active measures - such as suggested

by the Sydney Physician - would the outcome have been much more positive.

After all, my mother-in-law was totally mobile and lucid when she first presented.

Again, my grateful appreciation to all of you, the support helps with the healing process, and in moderating my anger.

[sandgroper2]

You are asking us questions that ONLY the hospital can answer . Ask the hospital.

[JAYDOUBLEYOU]

That’s just it Sandgroper…I have!

I have had several discussions (in person), with a number of the Hospital’s doctors - both as the events were unfolding, and after my MIL passed away.

They maintain that the treatment was OK…even getting a second opinion to support this.

HOWEVER, when I ask the following questions, every single doctor is SILENT…they just look at me.

Question 1- “If you were the initial doctor treating my mother-in-law, would you have done more?”

Question 2 - “Again, if my MIL was your patient, would you have told her the full results of her MRI Scan, and Blood Tests?”

Nobody from the hospital will give a verbal response to either question…their BODY LANGUAGE however, tells me their answers.

[NancyL]

You may want to ask for this thread to be moved to the Health subforum for the opinion of Sheryl the moderator. She's a nurse with much experience in Thailand's hospitals.

I've had some experience assisting elderly expats in Chiang Mai and it's been my observation that with a private hospital the patient and family are given a written report about a MRI scan and lab tests, maybe not the same day, but certainly the next. If the doctor is looking at written results, then these are shared with the patient. Perhaps the doctor thought your wife and MIL couldn't understand the results, but if something had been said about you, a foreigner being interested, then they should have been offered. After all, they were ordered and paid for. The customer has a right to see the results of what they bought.

The fact that you've asked this question and everyone at the hospital is "silent" tells you that this is their standard practice, also, and the physician was wrong, but they won't come out and say that.

The open question is what can be done at this point. Nothing will bring back your MIL. Thailand is not a litigious society when it comes to medical care. This is one reason the costs of medical care are so much cheaper here than in the west and why it's possible for good doctors to continue to work part-time and continue to see patients once they reach retirement age. Such a thing would be impossible in the west because of the cost of malpractice insurance.

That being said, the least they should do is to offer to refund the cost of her care.

Have you asked them to do anything specifically "to make this right" or are you continuing to ask questions, expecting someone to actually admit they made a mistake and do what (?) fire the doctor involved, tell the world they made a mistake, what, exactly are you expecting at this point?

[joeyg]

May she rest in peace...

[thaibeachlovers]

That’s just it Sandgroper…I have!

I have had several discussions (in person), with a number of the Hospital’s doctors - both as the events were unfolding, and after my MIL passed away.

They maintain that the treatment was OK…even getting a second opinion to support this.

HOWEVER, when I ask the following questions, every single doctor is SILENT…they just look at me.

Question 1- “If you were the initial doctor treating my mother-in-law, would you have done more?”

Question 2 - “Again, if my MIL was your patient, would you have told her the full results of her MRI Scan, and Blood Tests?”

Nobody from the hospital will give a verbal response to either question…their BODY LANGUAGE however, tells me their answers.

HOWEVER, when I ask the following questions, every single doctor is SILENT…they just look at me.

It is worth realising that no health care person is supposed to answer questions that might open the hospital to legal sanctions or financial penalty. To answer your questions would do just that.

I do sympathise with your loss, but sometimes you just have to accept that that is the way it is in LOS.

Some on here have recommended legal action, but I wouldn't attempt that, being a deep hole into which to throw your money with little hope of satisfaction. However, OTY.

[thaibeachlovers]

You may want to ask for this thread to be moved to the Health subforum for the opinion of Sheryl the moderator. She's a nurse with much experience in Thailand's hospitals.

I've had some experience assisting elderly expats in Chiang Mai and it's been my observation that with a private hospital the patient and family are given a written report about a MRI scan and lab tests, maybe not the same day, but certainly the next. If the doctor is looking at written results, then these are shared with the patient. Perhaps the doctor thought your wife and MIL couldn't understand the results, but if something had been said about you, a foreigner being interested, then they should have been offered. After all, they were ordered and paid for. The customer has a right to see the results of what they bought.

The fact that you've asked this question and everyone at the hospital is "silent" tells you that this is their standard practice, also, and the physician was wrong, but they won't come out and say that.

The open question is what can be done at this point. Nothing will bring back your MIL. Thailand is not a litigious society when it comes to medical care. This is one reason the costs of medical care are so much cheaper here than in the west and why it's possible for good doctors to continue to work part-time and continue to see patients once they reach retirement age. Such a thing would be impossible in the west because of the cost of malpractice insurance.

That being said, the least they should do is to offer to refund the cost of her care.

Have you asked them to do anything specifically "to make this right" or are you continuing to ask questions, expecting someone to actually admit they made a mistake and do what (?) fire the doctor involved, tell the world they made a mistake, what, exactly are you expecting at this point?

I don't see why you think they should refund the cost. The patient received treatment/ diagnoses for which the hospital rightly expects payment. Only in a case of gross negligence would they be liable for anything, and that has not been established.

When I broke my hand in a traffic accident, the emergency Dr was clearly ( to me as a health care worker ) incompetent, delaying healing by many days, and a lot of extra expense to me, but it would have been a loser to do anything about it.

[NancyL]

I was asking the OP what he hoped to accomplish in questioning the hospital and asking for a second opinion from other doctors at the same hospital.

I have first-hand knowledge of situations where doctors and other medical professionals in private hospitals in Chiang Mai made mistakes that resulted in delays in healing, permanent and unnecessary scaring and even death. They have been willing to reach a financial compromise that is reasonable. What they won't do is pay out extraordinary amounts for "pain and suffering", "loss of income" and "unnecessary death" like juries award in the west.

And no, it's not necessary to get a lawyer involved in these situations. They're pretty worthless anyway here when it comes to medical malpractice.

[Rancid]

My sister in law had symptoms that seemed to me very worrying, so suggested she get to a hospital asap. She did, was but put on a saline drip only for dehydration.

Due to my background once upon a time, I disagreed with the hospital, had her removed and sent to a private hospital where they came up with the more serious diagnosis I expected.

Likewise my wife once had abdominal pains with a positive rebound. The hospital diagnosed it as gas. Took her to another hospital where the expected appendicitis was diagnosed.

Both of these were not complex diagnostics, the symptoms or case history were screaming the likely problem, and yet were completely missed by the doctors. I really for the life of me can't see how, both wrong treatments could have led to death. Find a good doctor/hospital and stick with it, if in doubt get a 2nd opinion.

[pgrahmm]

Sorry for your loss.....

Even in the US the 6th leading cause of death.....Much worse if you factor in Hospital Infections & RX mistakes that bump it another 52,000 deaths moving it to 4th place.....

Probably worse in socialized medicine nations.....

Might be better/worse/same here......

Edited July 9, 2016 by pgrahmm

[stevenl]

I was asking the OP what he hoped to accomplish in questioning the hospital and asking for a second opinion from other doctors at the same hospital.

I have first-hand knowledge of situations where doctors and other medical professionals in private hospitals in Chiang Mai made mistakes that resulted in delays in healing, permanent and unnecessary scaring and even death. They have been willing to reach a financial compromise that is reasonable. What they won't do is pay out extraordinary amounts for "pain and suffering", "loss of income" and "unnecessary death" like juries award in the west.

And no, it's not necessary to get a lawyer involved in these situations. They're pretty worthless anyway here when it comes to medical malpractice.

I think op has to answer that question in order for him to move forward.

[NancyL]

FB_IMG_1466750660745.jpg

Sorry for your loss.....

Even in the US the 6th leading cause of death.....Much worse if you factor in Hospital Infections & RX mistakes that bump it another 52,000 deaths moving it to 4th place.....

Probably worse in socialized medicine nations.....

Might be better/worse/same here......

What is the source of these statistics? Usually published statistics are gleaned from what is listed as "cause of death" on a death certificate and rarely is something like "obesity" or "tobacco" listed as a cause of death. Yes, they do cause death, but what would be listed would be "lung cancer" or "complications of diabetes" and not "tobacco" or "obesity". Kind of calls into question the stats about "medical errors" and "hospital associated infections".

Edit: I'm not trying to be argumentative, just curious.

[jadee]

My condolences to the OP for his and his family's tragic loss. I admire him for doing everything possible to help - he undoubtedly helped ease the situation for both his wife, her mother and their family so he deserves credit for that.
My personal, non-medical (and therefore useless) opinion is that the private hospital didn't do enough yet it was undoubtedly better than going to the public hospital.
A few years ago, I read an article in a British newspaper about new research into the effects of intervention following a stroke; if care is given soon enough, the effects can be minimal. The article compared two men. One, an American, had a stroke on a plane as it arrived at Heathrow and was given immediate assistance, he recovered almost 100%. The other, a British man, was left waiting for 12 hours in hospital before receiving care and lost a huge amount of bodily and cognitive function. Based on that, I'd guess that if the OP's MIL had suffered a stroke without seeking assistance, her chances of survival would have been very low.
My views about private hospitals in Thailand is based upon my experience of helping my wife get medical care. We live in Samut Prakarn, my wife is Thai and she has had minor issues with panic attacks. There is a government hospital in our province in Paknam but getting treatment there requires long, long waits. That's why I buy BUPA healthcare for my wife so she can go private. However, the private hospitals we have been to seem very nepotistic with aging doctors failing to update their training, possibly due to potential loss of face. The central government hospitals in Bangkok are staffed by younger doctors with more recent training and offer a higher standard of care, in my opinion. That's why sadly, to hear of this case in Rayong doesn't surprise me. Private health care is always wise, in my opinion. It's sad that Thailand doesn't care for its citizens more but that's the way it is.
Once again, I'd say the OP did everything possible and should feel proud of having helped out in a helpless situation that would have been much worse if he hadn't been there.

[pgrahmm]

Sorry Nancy.....It came out of an article I read but cannot re-find.....I thought the breakdown interesting & screen shot it....I'll screen shoot something but then lose track of the source from time to time.....

FB_IMG_1466750660745.jpg

Sorry for your loss.....

Even in the US the 6th leading cause of death.....Much worse if you factor in Hospital Infections & RX mistakes that bump it another 52,000 deaths moving it to 4th place.....

Probably worse in socialized medicine nations.....

Might be better/worse/same here......

What is the source of these statistics? Usually published statistics are gleaned from what is listed as "cause of death" on a death certificate and rarely is something like "obesity" or "tobacco" listed as a cause of death. Yes, they do cause death, but what would be listed would be "lung cancer" or "complications of diabetes" and not "tobacco" or "obesity". Kind of calls into question the stats about "medical errors" and "hospital associated infections".

Edit: I'm not trying to be argumentative, just curious.

[pgrahmm]

Sorry Nancy.....It came out of an article I read but cannot re-find.....I thought the breakdown interesting & screen shot it....I'll screen shoot something but then lose track of the source from time to time.....

FB_IMG_1466750660745.jpg

Sorry for your loss.....

Even in the US the 6th leading cause of death.....Much worse if you factor in Hospital Infections & RX mistakes that bump it another 52,000 deaths moving it to 4th place.....

Probably worse in socialized medicine nations.....

Might be better/worse/same here......

What is the source of these statistics? Usually published statistics are gleaned from what is listed as "cause of death" on a death certificate and rarely is something like "obesity" or "tobacco" listed as a cause of death. Yes, they do cause death, but what would be listed would be "lung cancer" or "complications of diabetes" and not "tobacco" or "obesity". Kind of calls into question the stats about "medical errors" and "hospital associated infections".

Edit: I'm not trying to be argumentative, just curious.

Sorry - didn't clear the last "quote" ......The semi reply - without an answer is embedded above ------> ^^^^^^^^ up there somewhere.....

[JAYDOUBLEYOU]

Thanks again to all my ThaiVisa colleagues for your interest, concern and support...it is greatly appreciated.

Linda, your insightful comments, along with the constructive advice and suggestions you offer are right ‘on the money’.

Speaking of which…yes, we had sought a refund from the hospital.

After I sent them a letter detailing my concerns, we were invited to a meeting.

Prior to arriving, my wife and I were hoping that even if the hospital did not want to admit that the initial doctor could have done more, perhaps they would at least demonstrate care and compassion.

We took along a photo of my late Mother-in-Law, to remind the Hospital authorities of the lovely human being she was.

I dragged my best suit out of moth-balls - to show them I was serious.

Hah…they had five people at the meeting, including a Lawyer and an interpreter.

Basically, they just stuck to their argument of “All treatment given to our mother was OK”.

THEY even went so far as to get a Doctor from Bangkok to review the case…and he agreed it was OK.

Still, neither that doctor, nor any person present at the meeting, would answer my two key questions:

Question 1- “If you were the initial doctor treating my mother-in-law, would you have done more?”

Question 2 - “Again, if my MIL was your patient, would you have told her the full results of her MRI Scan, and Blood Tests?”

There was definitely no offer of any refund or compensation,

AND at the end of the meeting, the Lawyer said something in Thai to my wife which made her very angry - she is normally quite placid.

This lawyer told my wife that I should be very careful, because Thailand has strong Libel Laws.

I told him that if he was trying to intimidate us, that it would only make us more determined, AND if the Hospital was in the right, then why would they need to hide behind the libel law.

By my now sharing this story with the ThaiVisa Community, we are demonstrating our love of our mum, and the strength of our resolve to get answers to all our questions…if not from the hospital, then at least from our ThaiVisa colleagues.

THEN maybe, we can have some closure to what has been a very trying and traumatic time for the whole family.

Thank you all for your support.

[NancyL]

Well, Jaydoubeyou it seems you've already had your answer from the hospital, so the intent of this thread was indeed to libel the hospital. I don't mean this in an unkind way, but why didn't you just come out in your original post and disclose the meeting with the hospital where they pulled out the big guns. Had you come onto the forum with an OP about "don't go to this hospital because they killed my MIL" it would have been yanked right away as being libelous, but what you did instead was a round-about way to do the same thing. You weren't really serious about asking for advice.

And while you haven't pointed a finger by listing the hospital by name, this thread has been open long enough and attracted enough attention that you've probably received PMs where you did disclose the name of the hospital. You were warned by the hospital's lawyer.