Medical workers, including doctors and nurses at Chulalongkorn University, yesterday told of the pressure of their feelings after a group of 200 anti-government protesters stormed into the hospital last week in search of troops and police hiding there.
" At that time, nobody could guarantee we would be safe or not," a nurse at Chulalongkorn Hospital, Supaporn Srithangsirikul said in trembling tones.
She was speaking on the violence at a round table discussion at the Thai Journalists' Association.
Supaporn said she was not there at the time anti-government protesters stormed into the hospital on April 10 - but the hospital's director had asked her to go down to Jong Konnee building where representatives of anti-government protesters, hospital executives and police were meeting.
About 10 minutes later, she heard what sounded like a gunshot and she and her colleagues fled to another room.
While hiding there, she heard a bell - the signal of a patient asking for assistance.
She said she and her colleagues crouched down on the floor as they made their way to the patient's bed.
"We had no idea if we would be safe or not - but we had to help the patient because this was our duty," she said.
As the coordinator of an organ transplant network, Supaporn said many patients waiting for organ transplants had lost the opportunity to receive medical treatment during the past few weeks.
"We were informed there were 5-6 deceased donors who'd donated their organs and this could help 4-5 patients - but we could not give this new life opportunity to the patients."
"Some had waited for the organ transplantation for their whole lives - but had now missed the chance," she said.
Supaporn said she wept when she saw the patient evacuation on TV.
Meanwhile, Dr Somkiet Sangwattanaroj, a cardiologist, said he had told his colleagues not to be afraid of the situation.
He said he did not agree with the decision of executives to close the hospital, as patients would lose the opportunity to receive continuous medication and maintain their condition
But for safety reasons, the hospital needed to close the doors and transfer patients to other places, which would be safe for them. However, movement depended on a patient's wishes.
"As we are doctors, no matter what happened we had to protect patients," he said,
"I want to beg anyone not to storm the hospital again. I hope Chulalongkorn Hospital would be the last place stormed by protesters," he said.
Chulalongkorn Hospital has so far reopened only the emergency medical services unit located at Jong Konnee Building from7.30am. to 4pm.