There are a few medical decisions that you will have to make for your child at birth or in the first few days you are in the hospital. It is good to think about these beforehand, so that you are prepared.
Choosing a pediatrician
From the moment your baby is born, he or she will be under the care of a pediatrician. If you have not already indicated a preference, the hospital will assign the doctor on duty at the time (you can always switch later, if you like). However, you may wish to choose your pediatrician ahead of time and meet with him or her to discuss some of the initial medical choices you will make for your baby in the first days of life.
Vaccines
Every country has different recommended vaccination schedules. Your doctor will inform you about the recommended vaccination schedule in Thailand. This may include some vaccinations for diseases that are more common here than in other countries, such as tuberculosis.
Here is the recommended vaccination schedules for the United States. If you’d like to mention a link to your country’s information on vaccines in the commments below, we’ll add it here.
Cord blood banking
At some point during your pregnancy, you will probably be approached by one of the cord blood banking services here in Thailand. Umbilical cord blood is rich in stem cells; this can be collected at birth and stored by one of these services against the (very low) chance that your child might develop certain diseases that can be treated with stem cells. For more information, see this article discussing the pros and cons, as well as some information about services available in Bangkok.
Circumcision
Circumcision is not routinely practiced here; if you are planning to have your child circumcised, be sure to check that the doctor is experienced in this (this will probably not be an issue in the major Bangkok hospitals, but is worth considering if you’re birthing in some of the other cities). Circumcision for non-religious reasons has declined sharply in recent decades in countries where it used to be routine (such as the US and Australia), and many national medical boards and medical associations have issued policy statements saying that routine circumcision is not recommended.
here is the link for number of reported cases and vaccine schedule
http://apps.who.int/immunization_monitoring/en/globalsummary/countryprofileresult.cfm
At birth the routine shots given here are Vitamin K, BCG and Hep B. They are not compulsory.
I would like to share this article for anyone who has a premature baby here in Bangkok. The idea of kangaroo care is something that hasnt reached Bangkok yet.
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/13/the-human-incubator/?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=ab1
Great article, Karen, thanks for sharing, definitely a good practice for parents to know about. In one of the birth stories on our site, a mother talks about using kangaroo care with her 8-week premature baby – you can see the story here.