Health chief's response to complaint: women's HIV status 'inconclusive', not confirmed
A senior public health official has questioned a woman’s claim that an inaccurate diagnosis by a state hospital that she was HIV+ had turned her life upside down.
“Patient files show her infection status is inconclusive because she has not yet undergone a set of complete tests at Thungsong Hospital,” Nakhon Si Thammarat’s public-health chief Dr Charaspong Sukree said on Friday after the woman’s complaint was widely publicised.
Charaspong added that the woman had also missed two scheduled appointments with doctors at the hospital.
He said he felt the need to speak up because the patient’s account didn’t tell the fully story and was unfair.
Maneerat Konghom, 31, claimed she had endured years of discrimination and social rejection since 2014, when she told friends the hospital had diagnosed her as having contracted the HIV virus. She says she found out only last year that she is in fact HIV-free.
Her lawyer also suggested earlier this week that Maneerat might consider filing a Bt30million compensation lawsuit.
Charaspong explained in detail on Friday that Maneerat tested positive to HIV in a Rapid Test but tested negative to the virus in a second (ELISA) test.
“Doctors then had similar tests conducted again and the results were the same. So as a precaution, they prescribed antiretroviral drugs for her and her newborn baby in January 2014,” he said.
“She was supposed to take another test the following month but she refused and after that, she also missed another appointment.”
Charaspong said about a year later, Maneerat returned to the hospital to deliver another baby.
“Similar tests were conducted and the same results came up. After two days, she left the hospital and has not returned in the years since. The hospital could not contact her either,” he said.
Then, on January 22 this year, the hospital heard that Maneerat had filed a complaint against it and was demanding Bt250,000 compensation.
According to Charaspong, the hospital then had a meeting with Maneerat on June 4, when she admitted being at fault for having missed appointments. Nevertheless, the hospital said they would pay her Bt50,000 as a goodwill gesture, an offer she accepted at the time.
After that meeting, however, Maneerat appeared to have changed her mind, did not return to pick up the Bt50,000 cheque and went to the media instead.
The good news is that the woman has definitely not contracted the virus.
“The hospital has also conducted complete tests for her and concluded that she is free from HIV,” Charaspong said.