Catering Company Denies Knowledge of ICU Location for Hospital Event
A catering company clarified it delivered pre-cooked Thai dishes for a hospital event but did not know the meal would be served in a pediatric ICU room where an Ang Thong couple's five-day-old son was being treated before his death.
A prominent catering company has clarified its involvement in a hospital catering incident, confirming it accepted a job to prepare five fully cooked Thai dishes but insists it was not a formal Chinese banquet service. The case stems from an Ang Thong couple who sought assistance from the Paveena Hongsakul Foundation for Children and Women after their five-day-old son died. The infant had breathing difficulties and was admitted to the pediatric ICU for treatment.
When visiting their child, the parents discovered hospital staff had organized five tables of food service near their son's bed. The hospital subsequently informed them of the child's death and instructed them to proceed with cremation arrangements.
On July 24, the catering company owner revealed details of the arrangement, explaining that while they did accept the job, it involved pre-cooked Thai food items—fried pork, fried chicken, stir-fried vegetables, clear soup, spicy pork salad, and fruit—delivered in containers for staff to portion out themselves. The company stated this was not a formal banquet but a catering delivery service where young servers simply arranged plates and tables before stepping back. The owner emphasized the arrangement was limited to two or three tables and that they only learned the venue was a pediatric ICU room on the day of service after being told by hospital staff. The company noted that for typical hospital events, they would normally set up in open outdoor spaces, but this time the hospital had already prepared the location. The owner stressed they received job details only on the day of travel, being informed it was a meal delivery event for shared consumption, and they had been handling multiple jobs simultaneously, which prevented them from knowing the exact location in advance.
