According to the Nation, 146 doctors nationwide have quit in protest over the Public Health Ministry’s proposed changes to Thailand’s payment scheme for healthcare professionals.
The amended payment schedule (nicknamed “Pay-for-Performance” or “P4P”) would pay doctors according to how many patients they attend to, rather than according to their willingness to service a specific locale. As a result, many rural doctors, represented by the Rural Doctors Society, have insisted that their livelihoods would become rapidly untenable, forcing them to move into Thailand’s urban environments in search of employment.
Rural doctors especially have been vocal in their opposition to the legislative change.
In addition to the 146 doctors who have quit their posts, a group of caretakers led by the Rural Doctors Society staged a protest last week in front of Bangkok’s Government House, calling on the Public Health Minister to forestall this change to the payment scheme.
