Bkk Post - Burmese abortions drain

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Subject: Bkk Post - Burmese abortions drain medical budget

Bangkok Post - July 29, 1999.
Burmese abortions drain medical budget
Supamart Kasem

Ignorance about family planning has caused an increasing number of Burmese
immigrants to seek abortions.

Dr Kanoknart Pisuthakul, director of Mae Sot Hospital, Tak, also said the
number of Burmese women suffering from abortion-related complications had
soared to 617 over the past six months. Last year, 539 Burmese immigrant
workers sought treatment from Mae Sot Hospital for abortion-related
conditions.

Dr Kanoknart said the majority of women who had terminations were manual
workers and prostitutes. To increase awareness about safe sex and family
planning, Mae Sot Hospital has joined forces with the World Vision
Foundation and Medicine Sans Frontieres to launch an awareness campaign that
will be started this week.

The increasing number of Burmese patients has also put pressure on the
budget that had been set aside to provide treatment for local, low-income
earners.

Hospital figures estimate 134,911 Burmese immigrants work in Mae Sot, Mae
Ramat, Tha Song Yang and Umphang districts of Tak.