Community hospitals ailing due to dearth of specialists
An unprecedented health crisis is unfolding as smaller facilities are forced to send patients to provincial centres due to a shortage of specially trained surgeons
- Published: 10 Feb 2013 at 00.00
- Newspaper section: News
Kongjian Phusatan looks anxious as he waits to see a doctor at Chiangkhong Crown Prince hospital in Chiang Rai, not far from the border with Laos.
LOSING PATIENCE: Somdet Prayannasungworn community hospital in Chiang Rai’s Wiang Chai district has resumed hernia and cataract surgeries after launching a project to share medical specialists with nearby Chiang Rai Prachanukroh provincial hospital.
The 53-year-old farmer suffers from an infected wound on his left foot. Diabetes has led to poor blood circulation and nerve damage in his feet, and the prognosis looks grim.
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