Champion of the consumer cause

In her role as secretary general of the Foundation for Consumers, Saree Ongsomwang is no stranger to conflicts. She's clashed with several titans during her 14-year tenure and vows not to back down on the draft law concerning medical malpractice.

"If I had no solid social capital, I'd be dead by now," she says of her many fights.

Established in 1996, the foundation has campaigned against the increase in the tollway fee, the lack of transparency in the appointment of the National Drug Committee, unfair estate developers and many more causes. Saree says her work is guided by a simple motto: Making an official complaint once speaks louder than just complaining 1,000 times".

As a co-founder and vital member of the foundation, Saree, 47,  can always be found at the side of the mistreated consumer, no matter what the complaint.

But it's her background in the world of medicine that has made her such a valuable ally in medical-malpractice cases. Saree was a nurse at Chulalongkorn Hospital for three years before joining the Coordinating Committee for Primary Health Care of Thai NGOs (CCPN).

"During my nursing days, I was studying for my master's degree in community development at the Thammasat University. The course taught me that what I really wanted to do was work for the public interest," she says. Saree signed on with the CCPN in 1989.

When the CCPN expanded its service by establishing the Foundation for Consumers seven years later, Saree was there and has been the foundation's voice ever since.

Although the foundation's services reach well beyond the health sector, Saree has continued to deal with many cases relating to patients who feel they've been badly treated.

Last year, her foundation received 169 complaints of alleged medical malpractice. Six of the cases have gone to court.

To Saree, the court proceedings are time-consuming and complicated, making it hard for consumers to fight for their rights. That's why she's such a strong advocate of the Medical Malpractice Victim Protection Bill.

"If someone is going to block it, I really will fight to the death," she says.

The bill is now a subject of great controversy.

Many groups of doctors have opposed the bill on the grounds that it will damage doctor-patient relationships and encourage some patients to blame doctors in their attempts to claim compensation.

"They look down on people. Patients have dignity. They are not going to do such things," Saree argues.

The bill offers a no-fault compensation fund to help patients suffering damages from medical treatment. It also allows compensated patients to sue doctors/medical workers on criminal charges.

The bill's opponents have cried foul over this clause, saying that the draft law is supposed to reduce lawsuits against doctors too. They've also embarked on a serious campaign war against the bill, publishing their points of concerns and visiting media outlets, but Saree says she is not concerned.

"That's good because it will make people and most medical workers interested in finding more information about the bill," she says.

According to her, some high-profile doctors consider her as their enemy. "I'm perceived as someone bent on filing lawsuits against medical workers. They are trying hard to stop the bill from going to the Parliament. That's bad but what is even worse is that when these doctors raise concerns about the bill, most members of their profession tend to eye the bill with suspicion too.

"But I would urge them to look into the details first. In fact, the bill will benefit medical workers," she says, "If they have concerns about certain points in the draft, we can talk".

Saree explains that even without the bill, patients could still turn to both the Civil and Criminal courts.

"The bill means patients who have suffered damage as a result of malpractice will get quick remedial actions and should be less likely to go to court," she explains.

Saree cites the case of a female patient who decided to sue a doctor even though she was informed in advance that the operation to remove tumours from her womb might affect her urinary tract and bladder. When she suffered damage to her bladder and was bedridden for months, she demanded Bt1.7million compensation from the doctor.

"The Medical Council looked into the case and ruled that while the treatment was up to standard, the hospital should provide a remedy. The hospital didn't want to pay for the remedy and forced the doctor to shell out instead."

Saree is convinced that if the bill is passed into law, such cases could be prevented because all the patient really needed was some help.

Even though Saree is confident about the content of the draft law, she has few expectations that all doctors will agree with her.

"I must admit that I am worried about the opposition," she says.

Her opponents are playing dirty too, making several allegations that don't put Saree in a good light. Among the accusations are that Saree plans to reap benefits from the no-fault compensation fund to be established under Act, if the bill sails through the Parliament. Another has it that Saree is interested in vying for a senatorial seat and therefore needs to fight for the bill in order to win public support.

Yet another allegation says that Saree has reaped personal profits from her works at the foundation and that she drives around in a Bt20million Mercedes Benz.

"All these allegations are groundless," Saree says firmly.

"I've never sought personal gains in working for consumers' rights and I drive  a second-hand Volvo that cost me less than Bt100,000."

Saree adds that her family is not poor and that if  the foundation terminates her for any reason, she can return to her hometown in Ranong and work on the family's rubber plantation.

She also denies the rumours that she has political ambitions.

"I will do what I like. I feel politics are dirty and I have no intention of wading into that quagmire," she says.