For many refugee children in Bangkok, a fever, injury, or chronic illness isn’t just a health concern – it’s financial impossibility.
Healthcare inequality isn’t just an abstract global issue, it’s a daily reality for refugee children living in our own city. Lifeline’s top priority is to raise awareness and take action regarding healthcare inequality for refugee children in our community, ensuring that every child has access to essential medical care, regardless of their background or financial status. Through our partnership with the TzuChi medical clinic, we are dedicated to supporting children, those in need, and refugees and asylum seekers that require medical attention and other forms of support but do not have the resources to acquire it.
In Bangkok especially, it can be immensely difficult for refugees to access safe, reliable healthcare, particularly for children with critical conditions. While Tzu Chi Foundation provides compassionate medical support to those who cannot afford it, many refugee families still struggle to cover the full costs of urgent and even basic essential treatments, which can reach up to 50,000 baht per child. Our club works to bridge this gap by taking both indirect action – raising funds – and direct action – volunteering to support these children. In doing so, we ensure they receive the care they need and deserve whilst drawing attention to the wider issue of unequal healthcare access in our home city.
Fundraising is one aspect of our club, we do so by organizing events such as bake sales, and fun-day activities that bring our school community together whilst raising crucial funds simultaneously. This year, we aim to raise a minimum of THB 30,000, with the long-term goal of covering the full medical expenses for lifesaving surgeries and treatments for at least two refugee children. These lives – the children’s futures – will be changed forever, for the good. Whilst this number may not seem enormous alone, this only further highlights how frighteningly expensive these treatments can be, and what vast differences small steps can make.
Not only that, our mission extends beyond fundraising. We strongly believe in direct engagement, encouraging students to get personally involved through awareness campaigns, events. Most importantly, during our weekly visits to the medical clinic, we volunteer alongside Tzu Chi staff and assist with tasks ranging from taking patient vitals and IT work, to translating for refugees, allowing them to effectively communicate with the doctors and overcoming language barriers. These trips emphasize the importance of diversity, being able to help people from all kinds of backgrounds. Proving just how much difference we can make. We believe this hands-on involvement not only provides immediate assistance to those in need, but also instills empathy, awareness, responsibility, and lasting commitment to social justice within our school community.
