Dr Supat Hasuwannakit: Thailand’s COVID hero faces govt backlash

As a long-time member of the Rural Doctor Society (RDS), Dr Supat Hasuwannakit has spent decades fighting to expand healthcare coverage for all Thais.

His reputation as a straight-talking whistleblower and tireless defender of public health made him one of the most trusted voices during the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, when he recently landed in trouble for simply “trying to help” at the height of the pandemic, he received an outpouring of support.

Several organisations have stepped up in his defence after it was widely reported that a Public Health Ministry disciplinary probe found him guilty of “serious offences” and recommended his dismissal.

The inquiry reportedly accused Supat of neglecting his official duties in the South on three occasions between July and August 2021, when he travelled to Bangkok to provide free COVID-19 tests with free antigen test kits (ATKs) under the RDS banner.

Supat had procured the kits – then in desperately short supply – through what was described as “special methods”. At a time when vaccination rates were still low and the virus was tearing through communities, he was convinced they were essential for controlling the spread and protecting vulnerable people.

While this move was widely credited with saving lives during the peak of the crisis, the Public Health Ministry later deemed it a violation and grounds for disciplinary action. Supporters say Supat is being unfairly targeted for openly criticising the government’s handling of the pandemic.

“The investigation and punishment should be cancelled immediately,” the Northern Rural Doctor Network said in a statement on Wednesday (August 20). “The Public Health Ministry should heed the voices of frontline health workers.”

Praising Supat as an exemplary doctor who consistently stood up for deprived communities, the statement cautioned that “punishing him would set a troubling precedent for the future of Thailand’s public health sector”.

The Southern Community Hospital Directors Club also voiced support, stressing that the procurement and distribution of test kits was a humanitarian effort to help people during a crisis, not a move to advance vested interests.

Meanwhile, the Network of Strong People urged the House anticorruption committee to investigate why the Public Health Ministry’s permanent secretary and fellow heath officials were pushing this case.

Humanitarian at heart

Supat’s commitment to public service was evident even before he entered the healthcare sector in 1994. During his time as a medical student at Chulalongkorn University, he volunteered for several community missions and led the student council under the university's motto: “The Honour of Chula is the Honour of Public Service”.

Despite the demands of medical school, he also joined the 1992 Black May pro-democracy protests against coup leader General Suchinda Kraprayoon. His efforts to mobilise students around national reform saw him elected secretary-general of the Student Federation of Thailand that same year.

After graduating in 1994 with second-class honours, Supat returned to his home province of Songkhla, on the Malaysian border, to serve in rural hospitals.

He became director of Sabayoi Hospital in 1995, later moving to Chana Hospital, where his efforts to protect public health extended to environmental activism.

He frequently voiced opposition to projects that threatened public health and the environment, notably a proposed coal-fired plant in Songkhla’s Thepha district.

During the COVID-19 crisis, Supat became one of the most outspoken critics of the government’s mismanagement, from its reliance on China’s Sinovac to the slow procurement of other vaccines. He also took a strong stance against the government’s legalisation of cannabis, citing public health concerns.

Although he maintains that his actions are always guided by the public good, they have repeatedly brought him into conflict with authorities. Two years ago, he was transferred from Chana Hospital, forced to leave a district where he had built strong ties with local communities.

Recently, Supat addressed rumours that he might soon be dismissed from his post as director of Sabayoi Hospital.

“Every time I make comments as RDS president on the Public Health Ministry’s work, my aim is to provide constructive criticism so things can be changed for the better,” said Supat, who was appointed RDS chief in 2020.