On May 29, seventy doctors from two of Thailand’s leading medical schools publicly endorsed the Medical Council’s decision to discipline physicians involved in the controversial six-month hospital stay of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who avoided serving time in prison during his one-year sentence.
The group, composed of alumni from Class 82 of Siriraj Hospital Medical School and Class 7 of Ramathibodi Hospital Medical School, issued a joint statement supporting the council’s resolution passed on May 8. The doctors stressed that the Medical Council must uphold professional integrity and resist external interference from what they described as “unethical powers” that could seek to reverse the disciplinary decision for vested interests.
The Medical Council found that one doctor at the Corrections Department’s hospital failed to meet required medical standards. Two senior physicians at the Police General Hospital (PGH) were also found to have misrepresented Thaksin’s health status, leading to disciplinary action. The council imposed a suspension of medical licenses for the two PGH doctors and issued a formal warning to the third.
The decision is currently under review by Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin, who serves as the council’s special chair. He has 15 days from receiving the findings to decide whether to uphold or veto the ruling.
Thaksin responded during a talk at the Office of the Narcotics Control Board earlier this week, criticizing the Medical Council over a leaked message in a Line chat group, in which a council member allegedly made disparaging remarks about him. Thaksin questioned the council’s ethical standards in light of this leak.
If Somsak decides to veto the ruling, the Medical Council would need a two-thirds majority of its 70 members to override the decision and enforce the disciplinary measures.
