Mother Questions Hospital After Newborn Dies Following Childbirth
A newborn died from oxygen deprivation and severe lung infection three days after a cesarean section at a Bangkok private hospital, prompting the mother to question whether anesthesia complications and delayed transfer to a second hospital
On July 17, 2026, at 10:30 a.m., the parents and grandmother of a newborn arrived at the Paveena Hongsukul Foundation for Children and Women in Pathum Thani province to file a complaint with Ms. Paveena Hongsukul. The mother, Ms. A (pseudonym), age 26, a construction worker from Phayao province, had registered for prenatal care at a private hospital in Bangkok's Prasat Charoen district using the Gold Card healthcare scheme. On July 4, 2026, when she arrived for her scheduled natural delivery, she had no labor pain and her cervix had not dilated; the ultrasound showed a healthy female fetus. She was rescheduled for July 7, then July 9 for a planned cesarean section.
On July 9 at 11:00 a.m., the mother entered the delivery room. The doctor attempted an epidural block but could not find a vein because of her larger body frame (105 kg), so he switched to inhalation anesthesia. During the cesarean procedure, she suddenly regained consciousness. The doctor halted the surgery and administered additional anesthesia. She did not regain awareness until 3:00 p.m. Her husband inquired about the baby and was told the newborn had an abnormally rapid heartbeat and was in the pediatric ICU.
At 6:00 p.m., the baby showed no response and needed to be transferred to a second hospital in Bangkok. Although the transfer was supposed to occur at midnight on July 10, it did not happen until 3:00 a.m., with the second hospital's doctor questioning the delay. On July 11 at midnight, the second hospital informed the mother that the baby had died from oxygen deprivation and severe lung infection. The death certificate, however, listed "pulmonary hypertension" as the cause of death. The mother and family suspect the interrupted anesthesia during surgery, the repeated anesthesia administration, and the delayed transfer may have contributed to their daughter's death. When they asked the first hospital staff for an explanation, they were told the child had aspirated amniotic fluid.
