New-World and Transcultural Impact on Thai Medical Practices and Professional Behaviour
SUKHIT PHAOSA V ASDI, M.D.*, YUEN TANNIRANDORN, M.D.*, HENRY WILDE, M.D.***
Affiliation : * Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, **Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University, *** Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.
Thailand, which is barely recovering from
the 1997 economic collapse, has passed a new
constitution, has a new government and all of this
will have a profound effect on the way doctors prac-
tice and interact with their patients. Some of the
factors that have been responsible for this are :
1) Passage of a patient's rights bill
2) Legal definition of what is a proper con-
sent form
3) The public's demand for openness, better
communication and transparency in medicine
These concepts, which now have a legal as well
as moral basis, will impact directly on doctors and
nurses as their practices will be subject to increa-
singly intense scrutiny and criticism.
Doctors and nurses in past generations were
among the most respected members of Thai society.
SURASAK TANEEPANICHSKUL, M.D.*,
SORAJ HONGLADAROM, Ph.D.**,
They were trusted almost without exception and their
judgment was not questioned. Only rare cases of
malfeasence and malpractice came to public notice
though, no doubt, they existed but to a much lesser
degree. A physicians' life was much simpler for our
teachers, fathers and grandfathers. Life was inexpen-
sive, families were less demanding and the doctor
did not have to surround himself with expensive
foreign-made apparatus which can bankrupt the
doctor as well as the patients who have to pay the
bills. Medical decisions were made mostly on the
basis of observation, past experience at the bedside
and not in the laboratory or imaging rooms. Honest
errors in diagnosis were common, treatment was
limited and simple and this was all tolerated or
expected by the public. Few if any disappointments
on the part of patients ended up before a judge.
Keywords : Transcultural Millieu, Ethics, Medicine
