Thai in Korea on the mend

A 25-year-old woman who fell into a coma during a trip to South Korea is awake and recovering from an unidentified illness and no longer needs to rely on a respirator, doctors said.

However, despite her improved condition, Rapeeporn “Min” Nasaan will remain under close observation by doctors, Butsadi Santiphithak, chief of the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s Department of Information, said yesterday after she was updated by the hospital where Ms Rapeeporn is receiving treatment.

News of her improvement came as many people, both Thais and Koreans, offered financial aid to Ms Rapeeporn’s family who have been seeking help to pay her medical bills.

Her aunt, Somporn Kueasuwan, earlier said the hospital was charging the family 200,000 baht for the treatment and worried about whether they could afford it.

Ms Rapeeporn fell ill last Thursday, one day before she was scheduled to return to Thailand.

Her family’s concerns about not managing to cover the medical expenses may be relieved as a Korean businessman and manager of the hotel where Ms Rapeeporn stayed, helped pay the medical bills, Ms Butsadi said.

The University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, where Ms Rapeeporn obtained a bachelor’s degree, and Thai Airways International are also willing to help cover expenses, including her trip back to Thailand, she said.

But how long it will be before the patient is allowed to return to the country will depend on what Korean doctors’ say, and Rajavithi Hospital in Thailand which will provide further treatment, she added.

Ms Rapeeporn, whose hometown is in the northeastern province of Kalasin, went to South Korea on a short trip with three friends on March 20 and was supposed to return last Friday.