I had already booked an appointment about three weeks in advance for a C-section on September 11.
When I arrived at the hospital on that day around 7:12 AM, I was told there were no rooms available. I had to wait with a drip in the waiting area until a shared room was ready. I think I only got into the shared room around 11:30 AM. Even after my surgery, when I came out of the operating room around 2 PM, I still didn’t get a proper room. I had to stay in the shared room until 7 PM because there was no other room available. During that time, I couldn’t really rest since other patients in the room were coughing and having visitors.
Later, only after my family members went to request again and again, I was finally moved to another room. On that first night, we also had difficulties communicating with the Myanmar translator lady who was on duty.
The next day, September 12, my baby was brought to me at 10 AM. The Thai nurse used a translator app and just told me she would come back at 12 noon to give the milk bottle, but she didn’t explain anything else. Because of that, I had to request a Myanmar translator to ask about baby care. Even then, when the translator arrived, the communication still wasn’t smooth. His behavior felt rude, and he seemed to look down on Myanmar people, which made me even more uncomfortable.
Also, when I was first given my newborn, the baby was wrapped in a rough hospital cloth that even had loose threads. Before admission, I had asked the hospital what I needed to bring. I was told the hospital would provide everything, including two baby outfits, so I only brought two sets of clothes and a few diapers. But when the baby was delivered, they told me I could also use my own baby clothes. If I had known earlier that the hospital would use such cloth, I would have brought proper clothes from the start.
Those first two days were very stressful for me as a C-section patient and a first-time mother. I even felt like leaving the hospital early. But since I was still weak and my baby was only a newborn, I decided to endure it.
From the third day onwards, things got better. The translators on duty were more helpful, and communication became smoother. The Thai doctors, nurses, and cleaning staff were all kind and caring.