Hospital probed over alleged gold necklace payment demand for treatment
A private hospital is facing a probe after a family was allegedly asked to hand over gold necklaces as a security deposit after a 34-year-old patient requested to be transferred to a public hospital.
“We expect to get the probe results in three days,” Health Service Support Department (HSSD) deputy spokesman Dr Pattarapon Jungsomjatepaisal said Friday.
The complaint against Piyavejj Bowin Hospital, in Chon Buri’s Sriracha district, got the attention of the HSSD after a friend of a patient posted on the Internet that the hospital demanded more than Bt40,000 for treatment given in just two hours. The post also said that when the hospital was asked for help in transferring the patient to another hospital, it demanded that gold necklaces were placed as a security deposit.
The 34-year-old patient lost consciousness after a fall in a bathroom and was rushed to the Piyavejj Bowin Hospital earlier this week.
According to the Internet post, relatives and family requested a transfer of the patient after medical costs soared. The patient wanted to be transferred to another hospital where he was entitled to receive medical services free-of-charge under the social security scheme. But, according to the post, the hospital would only authorise the transfer if gold necklaces were handed over.
The hospital’s director Dr Piya Chiawprasit denied any wrongdoing, insisting that services were given in line with standards.