Thailand
THE S.T.A.B.L.E. PROGRAM
INTERNATIONAL TRIP REPORT
Locations where the S.T.A.B.L.E. Learner Courses were taught
Tha Muang , Tha Muang district, Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand
Mueang Sakon Nakhon Ditrict, Sakon Nakhon Province, Thailand
Report submitted by:
Wichest Boonyapredee, MD, FAAP
Neonatologist, Community hospital
Department of Pediatrics (honorary member)
901 Mac Arthur Blvd.
Munster, IN 46321
COURSE INFORMATION
S.T.A.B.L.E. Learner Course, January 10 to 11, 2023
Course location
Sakon Nakhon hospital
1041 Charoen Mueang Road, That Choeng Chum
Mueang Sakon Nakhon District,
Sakon Nakhon 47000, Thailand
Teaching Team: Wichest Boonyapredee, MD, FAAP
S.T.A.B.L.E. Learner Course, January 19 – 20, 2023
Course location
Somdet Phra Sangkarat 19th hospital
978/1 Moo 3 Sangchuto Road, Tha Muang,
Tha Muang district, Kanchanaburi Province , Thailand
Teaching Team:
Wichest Boonyapredee, MD, FAAP
Chutima Kannasoot MD, Neonatologist
Department of Pediatrics
Paholphonpayuhasena Hospital, Meung District
Kanchanaburi
ABOUT THIS MISSION TRIP
I was traveling on behalf of the TPAA medical mission (Thai Physician Association of America)
TPAA received funding from donations to TPAAF (Thai Physician Association of America Foundation), a nonprofit organization .
The goal of TPAA:
- Provide medical education for nurses and doctors in Thailand.
- Donation of medical equipment to the hospitals in Thailand
- Donation for scholarship fund for master’s degree at Harvard school of Public
- health for Thai students
- Donation for education scholarship fund for poor students in Thailand
- Disaster relief fund for earthquake, flood victims in US and anywhere in the
- world.
People are often interested in knowing more about the region you visited. Please describe the community where S.T.A.B.L.E. was taught.
A. Kanchanaburi province is in the central region of Thailand, many interesting site seeing, River Kwai bridge WWII, Cemetery for Unknown soldiers, beautiful Arawan waterfall, Oottamanusorn bridge the longest wooden bridge in Thailand.
Somdet Phra Sungkarat 19th is one of the largest community hospitals with 120 beds and 1000 deliveries per year, second highest in Kanchanaburi province and in the process of setting up 4 beds NICU where TPAA members donated 4 sets of high flow nasal cannula with a few sets of bubble CPAP and one set of Masimo pulse oximeter radical 97.
The class was very successful!
There were 6 members on the team, one Ob-Gyn, one Family practice, one internist and two nurses. The hospital Administrator and staff were very happy, took care us very well, sponsored hotel for three nights and three dinners as well as karaoke Farewell party.
Sakon Nakhon province
This province is located in the northeast of Thailand. There are many beautiful temples where the very well respected monk used to stay, Wat Tham Pha Daen, Wat Phra That Choeng Chum Worawihan Temple. We also visited Ban Tharae Catholic Community, Phra Archan Man Phurithatto Museum, and beautiful Nong Han Chaloem Phra Kiat Park. We visited the famous Kram Sakon Indigo dyeing shop for clothes, cotton .
Sakon Nakhon hospital is the largest hospital in Sakon Nakhon province with 800 patient beds and 3500 deliveries per year with 12 beds NICU and one neonatologist.
Sixteen TPAA members met at Don Mueang and flew to Sakon Nakhon airport where we received a very warm welcome from the members of red cross and enjoyed a delicious reception dinner. All together 19 TPAA members participated in this medical mission.
The class was very successful! Here TPAA members donated one set of transport incubator with Neopuff resuscitator, four syringe pumps, three infusion pumps, and two Masimo pulse oximeter radical 97 to the Department of Pediatrics, Sakon Nakhon hospital.
How many students attended your course and what were their credentials?
- Class 1: There were 47 students with 40 nurses and 7 physicians.
- Class 2: 147 students from 37 hospitals attended the class (139 nurses and 8 MDs)
Describe some of the nursing and medical challenges being faced by the S.T.A.B.L.E. course attendees with regard to provision of day to day neonatal care:
The Nursing and medical challenges in Thailand are:
- Medical equipment shortage
- The patients overload especially nurses and doctors who have to work very hard
- Some patients live so far from the hospital
- Some language barriers. For example, I spoke Thai during the class because most of the books are in the Thai Language.
How do you envision The S.T.A.B.L.E. Program will help the health care providers you taught?
I always think that S.T.A.B.L.E classes are a very valuable, in addition to NRP, providing excellent information for the care of sick neonates and should be a must for all neonatal providers.
If you collected information regarding student’s impressions of the S.T.A.B.L.E. course, please provide that information here:
HOW OTHERS CAN HELP WITH YOUR HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS:
We plan to do this medical mission every year, and you all are truly welcome to help support this medical mission by donating to TPAAF Save Babies Life project.
Kris Karlsen (STABLE Program Author) is very kind, very generous and very supportive. She had donated a large amount of S.T.A.B.L.E manuals previously and gave us a good discount for the manuals to help our medical mission in Thailand, we are very thankful and very appreciative.
In summary, I and our team cherished the whole experience and found that all the students were very excited, attentive, and very happy.
Thank you very much very much Kris, Beth, Mason, and S.T.A.B.L.E program for the creation of this wonderful neonatal education program.
MATERIALS DONATED FROM THE S.T.A.B.L.E. PROGRAM FOR YOUR COURSE:
6th Edition Learner/Provider Manuals
6th Edition Instructor Manuals
2nd Edition Cardiac Module books
