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Get to know our doctors

January 14, 2016

Assist. Prof. Dr. Thamabovorn Neti   Anesthesiologist

Assist. Prof. Dr. Thamabovorn, head of Bumrungrad’s Anesthesiology Department, graduated from the Faculty of Medicine (First Class Honors), Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, before  continuing her studies at the University of California Los Angeles, USA, in the area of anesthesia for adult cardiac surgery and pediatric congenital heart surgery. She returned to teach at Siriraj Hospital for 10 years before joining Bumrungrad. Dr. Thamabovorn is a member of the medical team that performs heart surgery to over 700 children in the “Rak Jai Thai” or “Healing Hearts” program.  

 

What do anesthesiologists do?

Our primary role is to work in  collaboration with surgeons to get  patients through surgery safely and with  minimum complications. To perform  this challenging job, anesthesiologists  integrate knowledge of internal medicine with surgical effects to choose the appropriate anesthetic technique and amount of anesthetic agents. During surgery, we monitor patients to ensure their organs receive sufficient blood and oxygen. We also are ready at all times to assist patients who need life-saving resuscitation.

 

In your practice, what case impressed you the most?

A female student had an accident that  caused a cervical spine fracture. All of  her limbs suddenly became immobile,  and she could only breathe and speak.  This serious injury would likely cost her the use of her arms and legs and death  was highly possible. As her doctor, I had  to share this disheartening prognosis  with her parents. The father – who was the driver in the accident – cried out, lamenting his daughter’s fate.  
Immediate cervical instrumentation  surgery was the only chance but could  offer only the slightest hope of recovery. I thought of my daughter who was  about the same age as the patient and  I understood the parents’ sadness. The surgery went well, and one year later  the patient came to visit. She was a  beautiful young woman with hardly any sign of her traumatic injury.  

So many events in my professional  life remind me that our devotion to  patients accumulates merit every day.  What is your work philosophy?   Patients always come first. Bumrungrad has a management structure  that gives priority to patients’ quality  care and safety, which matches exactly my work philosophy.

 

Prof. Dr. Roongroj Bhidayasiri Specializing in Neurology – Parkinson’s Disease


After graduating from the Faculty of  Medicine, Chulalongkorn University,  Prof. Dr. Roongroj received membership  and was awarded a fellowship at the  Royal College of Physicians of London  and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. Prof. Dr. Roongroj is also certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. At present, Prof. Dr. Roongroj holds a Professor appointment at Chulalongkorn University and Juntendo University Hospital, Japan.  

 

What sparked your interest in  Movement Disorders?  

Choosing my specialty when I did was challenging because it was very  new. Many thought that the prognosis  for Parkinson’s patients was always  bleak, that patients quickly become bedridden with no chance of a cure. But  when I studied this disease I discovered  that rigorous treatment could help  patients achieve a better quality of life.

 

How have treatment methods changed?  

In the past, if patients only had  slight shaking, doctors would advise  that no treatment was necessary. They  prescribed medication only when  several more symptoms presented. In  the past 10 years, treatment trends  for Parkinson’s disease have seen many new medicines come on the scene. Deep brain surgery and infusion therapy  show promise. There’s no cure, but Parkinson’s patients can enjoy a better quality of life for more than 20 years.  When I started in this specialty, most patients were wheelchair-bound five years after onset.  

 

What principles guide your work?  

To excel at a specialty one needs  determination and concentration, but  before that, you must like what you do. If you’re not passionate about your  specialty, then you won’t have the energy to pursue it with gusto and creativity.  I was fortunate to find a specialty I care deeply about and work hard to seek  opportunities to make it my practice area. What’s most important in medicine is  always to do the hard work. Expertise  comes from constant practice. 

 

Dr. Rosanee Valyasevi Specializing in Endocrinology and Metabolism

Dr. Rosanee graduated from the  Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, with First Class Honors, before pursuing  research and further studies in Endocrinology at Howard University Hospital,  Washington, DC, and the Mayo Clinic in  Rochester,  Minnesota. Upon finishing  her research, she passed the American  Board examination. After 14 years abroad she returned to Thailand in 2003 to work at Bumrungrad.  

 

What challenges do endocri- nologists face?  

Medical advances and technology  change so fast nowadays that doctors  must keep updating their knowledge  and follow developments. Another  challenge is to get patients to follow  treatment protocols. Diabetes is a  chronic disease requiring ongoing  treatment. Therefore, patients must  cooperate to ensure it’s effective.  
To provide the best treatment, I  gather the patient’s medical history and  assess their lifestyle conditions. Using  a patient’s laboratory results, I develop  a treatment plan, keeping in mind  medication side effects. It’s important to  let patients ask questions. I tell them I’ll  do my best to treat them, together with  their help, to avoid complications such  as heart disease or amputation. Most  patients understand and cooperate.    

 

What case impressed you the most?  

It was not a patient in the Endocrinology Department, but rather a  foreigner of about 18 or 19 years of age who was involved in a car accident in Southern Thailand. He had hemophilia, causing life-threatening hemoperitoneum (internal organ bleeding).  Because there was no coagulation  treatment available in the provincial  hospital, he bled after surgery, leading to shock and cardiac arrest. The  patient’s relatives in the USA contacted  the Mayo Clinic, and through its worldwide network of alumni, they contacted me for assistance.  

It was a Saturday evening; we sent an  air ambulance to transfer the patient to  the emergency room. After 45 minutes,  nine specialists saw him, including doctors specializing in intensive care,  heart disease, hemophilia, kidney  disease, infectious diseases, and surgery. With the success of the multidisciplinary team approach, he was able to  safely travel back to the United States,  demostrating Bumrungrad’s readiness  to provide life-saving, integrated care  to patients who urgently need our help.  

 

What is it like working at Bumrungrad?


Bumrungrad has the latest technology  and a highly skilled medical workforce  to implement them. More importantly,  we function as a team to solve patients’  problems as quickly and smoothly as possible, which makes it easier for us to deliver high-quality care.

 

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