Suphanat But-ek, 11 years old, is the son of Charoensri But-ek, 37 years old. She has 2 children, the eldest is 14 years old and is a normal child with a healthy body. Suphanat or Nong Tao has a congenital heart disease with a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Grandma said that her mother separated from her father when Nong Tao was about 7 months pregnant, so she went back to live with her grandmother in Ta Phraya District, Sa Kaeo Province. Since her mother is not very sane, she is unable to work. Grandma herself works as a general laborer, earning only 200 baht a day, but she has to support 4 lives: herself, Nong Tao’s mother, her eldest son, and Nong Tao. Even when she is sick, she has to go to work, otherwise she will have nothing to eat. But Grandma does not back down.

When Nong Tao was pregnant, her mother registered her pregnancy and gave birth at Aranyaprathet Hospital. When Nong Tao was about 1 year old, she got sick, so she took him to see a doctor at Ta Phraya Hospital. The doctor said that Tao had a lung disease, so he was treated until his grandmother moved to work as a housekeeper in Khao Yai. But when Tao got sick, she took him to see a doctor at Pak Chong Hospital. The doctor at Pak Chong Hospital informed him that Tao had a congenital heart defect with a hole, so he recommended that he be treated at his employer’s hospital. So, his grandmother took Tao to see a doctor at Sa Kaeo Hospital. When the doctor at Sa Kaeo Hospital examined him, he had him stay in the hospital. Tao stayed in the hospital for about 3 months before being able to leave the hospital and go home. During that time, the doctor at Sa Kaeo Hospital contacted him to come and receive treatment at the Children’s Heart Surgery Foundation. Until the staff of the Children’s Heart Surgery Foundation contacted him back to bring him to Rajavithi Hospital in early 2017 and followed up on his condition until he underwent surgery on October 14, 2017. Tao stayed in the hospital for about 2 weeks before being able to go home. After the surgery, his grandmother said that he was very naughty, more stubborn, ate more and ate more until his weight increased more than before. Which is very different from before the surgery because before the surgery, she was thin, had little weight, ate little, got sick often and for a long time.

Currently, she is studying at Koklan School, Ta Phraya Subdistrict, Sa Kaeo Province, in Grade 4. However, she has not returned to school yet because there are few teachers and they cannot take care of her well. Since she likes to walk out of the classroom, we have temporarily stopped her from school. Right now, she still has to come for follow-up check-ups with the doctor as scheduled. Traveling to see the doctor each time is quite difficult because her grandmother’s house is in Ta Phraya. When she comes, she has to take a songthaew from Ta Phraya to Aranyaprathet and then take a train from Aranyaprathet to Bangkok. On the days she has to bring her to see the doctor, her grandmother has to stop working, which means she has no income. Sometimes, she has to borrow money to pay for her travel and treatment. And Tao said that when she grows up, she wants to work and earn money to help her grandmother.