Pregnant in Pattaya

**the o'connors** · 30th April 2008 11:52

Hello all,

I've decided to post under "staffroom" because it also implied "life outside the classroom."

Anyways I am a teacher in pattaya and love it , we are both teachers, american, and expecting a baby in 3 months! Ahhhhhhhhh......I am sure my students are going to love my big belly..but heres the question well a few, and please if you know the answer to any we'd sure appreciate it!!!

1. Will having the baby in Thailand change our visa status ??? Will it help our visas "extend it", believe me, we are in no hurry to run back to the u.s.a

2. Has anyone heard of any horror stories giving birth at any hospitals that I should beware of??

3. Can the baby have any Thai benefits opposed to "farang" being that it will be born in Thailand????

Thanks Guys
Cheers

**haltest** · 30th April 2008 11:55

1. Will having the baby in Thailand change our visa status ??? Will it help our visas "extend it", believe me, we are in no hurry to run back to the u.s.a

No

2. Has anyone heard of any horror stories giving birth at any hospitals that I should beware of??

Ask around for one that is close to where you live and has a good reputation within your budget. The top hospitals charge around 190,000 for a birth if there are complications

3. Can the baby have any Thai benefits opposed to "farang" being that it will be born in Thailand????

There are no benefits unless one of the parents is Thai

**zehner** · 30th April 2008 11:56

moved to parenting

**the o'connors** · 30th April 2008 12:10

Wow, 190,000 baht...thats more than I ever imagined.....

**Johnh** · 30th April 2008 12:26

Congrats. Our son is nearly seven months old and a cheeky monkey at that. Anyway, checkout the available hospitals; I would recommend talking to women you know who have had or are having babies where you live and can relate their experiences to you.

In my opinion and as an ex nurse of some twenty four years, I think that many Thai hospitals and the staff are, in general, impersonal, money driven, and not very procative or dynamic. Nurses for example never do anything without consulting with the doctor, even when the situation may require some kind of clinical intervention; in the UK, and I guess the US, many nurses are responsible, independent practitioners willing to make decisions and and take actions as required;as said elsewhere here, you get what you pay for or can afford. Good luck with the

to be!

**drdublin** · 30th April 2008 13:58

Still it is incredibly less expensive than in the US.

**bewildered wanderer** · 30th April 2008 14:05

in regards to fees,
My wife was in ladprao hospital for my first 33k altogether for c-section
They were a bunch of assholes, but it was clean and private
so the second was at samitiwej and was 38k very good quality

190k er 210k is bamrungrad...
I guess I could have paid for that, but don't really see the poin t

**reinvented** · 30th April 2008 14:28

^
similare price at Phaya thai 2
admin were fuckwits but frontline and care staff were beyond reproach

Bgrad seems expensive, we were quoted 65k and the doctor who took care of us worked at Bgrad as well

**aging one** · 30th April 2008 15:02

Get a good doctor and have the birth at a government hospital. The doctors go where you are. The wife gave birth a Chula hospital and it was great. Wangsuda and others have been there as well. Not flashy but doctors and nurses always are there. Something that is often not the case in a private hospital.

What is your doctor recommending now?

**bewildered wanderer** · 30th April 2008 15:45

A bit off topic, i guess it applies ( i had something removed from my body) to Chula...
I had 2 wisdom teeth pulled there. 2200 baht 6 years ago. The way they handled the whole deal was amazing.

**the o'connors** · 1st May 2008 00:37

OK, I think I will go to Bangkok Pattaya hospital.... but I don't know the prices yet , I am currently in Seattle and will be back home in a week and half...so I can't wait to find out the price!!! Plus, I really think I want to do a natural birth.

I guess I just have to make sure I have all the proper paperwork to get the baby a passport, but what reallly sucks is that the baby won't have any Thai benefits...I know, I know one of us has to be Thai...can't the baby even get benefits or reduced farang price on a good international school just beacuse it was born in Thailand????

Oh and killing me softly 101: I will check out the expat since there are doctors that might understand the americans wanting to stay in Thailand (at least the first 4 years) of the child's life....I really think it can only enrich the child's experience!

Believe me it is only getting worse in the states!!! Economically, politically and just look up recent article about public education in the U.S....it's scary....

**LeedsLeedsLeeds** · 1st May 2008 00:56

I didn't realise that you are actually in the States right now. So you plan to come back to Thailand and give birth here; is that a wise idea?

It just all seems a bit strange to me as neither of you are Thai and the kid won't receive any of the benefits that a Thai child would get. There is absolutely no advantage (other than the cost) to be gained by your giving birth here.

**buddahas** · 1st May 2008 01:13

Had no idea cost in US is that high. The things in Canada we take for granted, OMFG. How can you even afford that on teacher salary? Good luck to you, I mean it.

**the o'connors** · 1st May 2008 04:29

Yes, I will check all that out...My husband and I are going to get BUPA or another insurance as soon as we get there May 17th. I don't mind giving birth in Thailand as opposed to the U.S. "Leeds"...because it really doesn't make a difference except that we would have to go to the U.S. embassy in Bangkok.

I just wan't to make sure the doctors and nurses are safe...hopefully we will have insurance before the birth and I know that this will help alot. I will definetly do alot of home schooling...really the U.S. at the moment is not a great place to raise a child...imagine all the attention and care a little one will get roaming the streets of Thialand compared to driving on freeways and empty roads full of fear.....at least at a young age,,,when the kid gets older than its fine but in the molding years I want the child to have a very colorful embracement...

**bingo enthusiast** · 2nd May 2008 10:34

if you pay tax you should get the Thai government medical scheme.
Two hospitals I have been to are Mission and Thonburi; both excellent.
Siriraj is the top teaching hospital in Bkk and where the royal family go.