| The author attributes the precariousness of medical care in Thailand to poor quality and insufficient quantity of medical personnel. Factors responsible for these deficiencies include: a population explosion of 3.3 per annum; an educational system that emphasizes technical and scientific know-how but fails to impart a sense of social responsibility; the brain drain; ethical and moral decline, brought about by the influx of "material civilization" from the developed countries; poor health are planning and delivery; and poor administration. Lack of social responsibility on the part of medical personnel is reflected in the length of consultation time - a maximum of 2 minutes per patie of 10 doctors surveyed. The doctor-to-patient ratio varies from 1:1 000 in Bangkok, to 1:100000 in rural areas, while 90-100 of the positions for paramedical personnel remain unfilled. Furthermore, people are discouraged from using existing, especially governmental, services due to the inhibiting social distances between doctor and patient. The author concludes that it is up to the doctors themselves, through the exercise of social responsibility, hard work, and the implementation of the long-needed re educational curriculum to break the vicious circle of permissive society, bureaucratic system, and inadequate care. |