Parents Demand Answers After Newborn Dies in ICU During Hospital Banquet
Parents of a five-day-old infant who died in a Thai provincial hospital's pediatric ICU are demanding answers after a Chinese banquet was held in the unit near the baby's incubator with unmasked staff present. The family suspects the unsani
On July 24, 2026, at 1:30 p.m., at the Ang Thong Provincial Health Office, Paveena Hongsukul, director of the Paveena Hongsukul Foundation for Children and Women, accompanied the grieving parents—a 40-year-old father and 36-year-old mother—who lost their five-day-old newborn. They met with Dr. Thaveechok Rojanaaramphakul, the provincial health officer, to report the infant's death and raise concerns about whether a Chinese banquet held in the pediatric ICU may have been a factor. The mother tearfully described how medical staff had been seated eating a Chinese banquet inside the pediatric ICU room, positioned near her baby's incubator with only a thin transparent curtain separating them. When she attempted to visit her child, a nurse harshly turned her away, saying visitation was not convenient that day due to the banquet.
The mother had asked the head of the pediatric ICU whether such events were permitted in the unit. The attending physician had assured her there was no infection risk because the baby was in a sterile incubator, yet she observed banquet staff entering without wearing masks, working in close proximity to the incubator with no protective measures. On the morning of July 21, a nurse called to say the infant's condition had become critical overnight. Around 10:00 a.m., the doctor reported they had performed chest compressions on the baby and informed the father privately that the child had contracted a new bloodstream infection due to a slowed heartbeat. After examining the baby for 45 minutes, the doctor emerged and announced the child had died, urgently requesting the body be removed from the ICU for a temple ceremony. A nurse later called asking whether they had proceeded with cremation or the funeral rite.
While preparing their child's funeral at the temple, the parents remained unable to accept the circumstances and harbored grave doubts about the true cause of death. They contacted the Paveena Foundation seeking justice and help uncovering what really happened. The father has since drawn a detailed diagram of the ICU room layout for the media, explaining the various risk factors their child faced.
