{"id":9911,"date":"2026-04-29T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/?p=9911"},"modified":"2026-08-10T04:13:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T21:13:35","slug":"from-royal-to-bhq-8-years-urology-cambodia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/2026\/04\/29\/from-royal-to-bhq-8-years-urology-cambodia\/","title":{"rendered":"\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u304b\u3089BHQ\u3078\uff1a\u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u3067\u306e8\u5e74\u9593\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u8a3a\u7642 - \u500b\u4eba\u7684\u306a\u9053\u306e\u308a"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-columns coblocks-author-columns has-background is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-52275889 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\" style=\"background-color:#8C8C971A;padding-top:2.5rem;padding-right:2.5rem;padding-bottom:2.5rem;padding-left:2.5rem\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:25%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-style-rounded\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" data-attachment-id=\"7037\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/new-photo-2024\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?fit=800%2C800&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"800,800\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone \u2014 Board-Certified Urologist in Bangkok, Thailand\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone \u2014 Board-Certified Urologist in Bangkok, Thailand&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?fit=800%2C800&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=800%2C800&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\u30bd\u30a2\u30e9\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30fb\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30e9\u30bd\u30dd\u30f3\u533b\u5e2b \u2014 \u30bf\u30a4\u3001\u30d0\u30f3\u30b3\u30af\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u5c02\u9580\u533b\" class=\"wp-image-7037\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=12%2C12&amp;ssl=1 12w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=600%2C600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=400%2C400&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/New-Photo-2024.png?resize=200%2C200&amp;ssl=1 200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:75%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/\">\u30bd\u30a2\u30e9\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30fb\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30e9\u30bd\u30dd\u30fc\u30f3\u3001\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u533b<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"\/ja\/\u8a3a\u5bdf\u4e88\u7d04\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u30d0\u30f3\u30b3\u30af\u75c5\u9662\u672c\u90e8\u3001\u30d0\u30f3\u30b3\u30af<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DrPomUroBHQThailand\/\">\u30b5\u30df\u30c6\u30a3\u30f4\u30a7\u30fc\u30c8 \u30b7\u30e9\u30c1\u30e3\u30fc\u75c5\u9662\u3001\u30c1\u30e7\u30f3\u30d6\u30ea\u30fc<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-outline is-style-outline--1\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-background-background-color has-text-color has-background has-small-font-size has-custom-font-size wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/lin.ee\/QlUAIFB\" style=\"color:#31ff00\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u30e9\u30a4\u30f3\u30b3\u30f3\u30bf\u30af\u30c8<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Medically written &amp; reviewed by Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone (Dr. Pom)<\/em><br><em>Last Updated: April 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><style>\/* Hover effect for Social Dr Pom Block - Social Icons *\/&lt;br \/> .wp-block-social-links .wp-social-link {&lt;br \/> transition: transform 0.2s ease, opacity 0.2s ease !important;&lt;br \/> }&lt;br \/> .wp-block-social-links .wp-social-link:hover {&lt;br \/> transform: scale(1.15);&lt;br \/> opacity: 0.9;&lt;br \/> }&lt;br \/> <\/style><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-social-links aligncenter has-normal-icon-size is-style-default coblocks-animate is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-social-links-is-layout-3e41869c wp-block-social-links-is-layout-flex\"><li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-facebook wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DrPomUroBHQThailand\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M12 2C6.5 2 2 6.5 2 12c0 5 3.7 9.1 8.4 9.9v-7H7.9V12h2.5V9.8c0-2.5 1.5-3.9 3.8-3.9 1.1 0 2.2.2 2.2.2v2.5h-1.3c-1.2 0-1.6.8-1.6 1.6V12h2.8l-.4 2.9h-2.3v7C18.3 21.1 22 17 22 12c0-5.5-4.5-10-10-10z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-instagram wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/dr.pom.uro.bhq.thailand\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M12,4.622c2.403,0,2.688,0.009,3.637,0.052c0.877,0.04,1.354,0.187,1.671,0.31c0.42,0.163,0.72,0.358,1.035,0.673 c0.315,0.315,0.51,0.615,0.673,1.035c0.123,0.317,0.27,0.794,0.31,1.671c0.043,0.949,0.052,1.234,0.052,3.637 s-0.009,2.688-0.052,3.637c-0.04,0.877-0.187,1.354-0.31,1.671c-0.163,0.42-0.358,0.72-0.673,1.035 c-0.315,0.315-0.615,0.51-1.035,0.673c-0.317,0.123-0.794,0.27-1.671,0.31c-0.949,0.043-1.233,0.052-3.637,0.052 s-2.688-0.009-3.637-0.052c-0.877-0.04-1.354-0.187-1.671-0.31c-0.42-0.163-0.72-0.358-1.035-0.673 c-0.315-0.315-0.51-0.615-0.673-1.035c-0.123-0.317-0.27-0.794-0.31-1.671C4.631,14.688,4.622,14.403,4.622,12 s0.009-2.688,0.052-3.637c0.04-0.877,0.187-1.354,0.31-1.671c0.163-0.42,0.358-0.72,0.673-1.035 c0.315-0.315,0.615-0.51,1.035-0.673c0.317-0.123,0.794-0.27,1.671-0.31C9.312,4.631,9.597,4.622,12,4.622 M12,3 C9.556,3,9.249,3.01,8.289,3.054C7.331,3.098,6.677,3.25,6.105,3.472C5.513,3.702,5.011,4.01,4.511,4.511 c-0.5,0.5-0.808,1.002-1.038,1.594C3.25,6.677,3.098,7.331,3.054,8.289C3.01,9.249,3,9.556,3,12c0,2.444,0.01,2.751,0.054,3.711 c0.044,0.958,0.196,1.612,0.418,2.185c0.23,0.592,0.538,1.094,1.038,1.594c0.5,0.5,1.002,0.808,1.594,1.038 c0.572,0.222,1.227,0.375,2.185,0.418C9.249,20.99,9.556,21,12,21s2.751-0.01,3.711-0.054c0.958-0.044,1.612-0.196,2.185-0.418 c0.592-0.23,1.094-0.538,1.594-1.038c0.5-0.5,0.808-1.002,1.038-1.594c0.222-0.572,0.375-1.227,0.418-2.185 C20.99,14.751,21,14.444,21,12s-0.01-2.751-0.054-3.711c-0.044-0.958-0.196-1.612-0.418-2.185c-0.23-0.592-0.538-1.094-1.038-1.594 c-0.5-0.5-1.002-0.808-1.594-1.038c-0.572-0.222-1.227-0.375-2.185-0.418C14.751,3.01,14.444,3,12,3L12,3z M12,7.378 c-2.552,0-4.622,2.069-4.622,4.622S9.448,16.622,12,16.622s4.622-2.069,4.622-4.622S14.552,7.378,12,7.378z M12,15 c-1.657,0-3-1.343-3-3s1.343-3,3-3s3,1.343,3,3S13.657,15,12,15z M16.804,6.116c-0.596,0-1.08,0.484-1.08,1.08 s0.484,1.08,1.08,1.08c0.596,0,1.08-0.484,1.08-1.08S17.401,6.116,16.804,6.116z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">\u30a4\u30f3\u30b9\u30bf\u30b0\u30e9\u30e0<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-wordpress wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M12.158,12.786L9.46,20.625c0.806,0.237,1.657,0.366,2.54,0.366c1.047,0,2.051-0.181,2.986-0.51 c-0.024-0.038-0.046-0.079-0.065-0.124L12.158,12.786z M3.009,12c0,3.559,2.068,6.634,5.067,8.092L3.788,8.341 C3.289,9.459,3.009,10.696,3.009,12z M18.069,11.546c0-1.112-0.399-1.881-0.741-2.48c-0.456-0.741-0.883-1.368-0.883-2.109 c0-0.826,0.627-1.596,1.51-1.596c0.04,0,0.078,0.005,0.116,0.007C16.472,3.904,14.34,3.009,12,3.009 c-3.141,0-5.904,1.612-7.512,4.052c0.211,0.007,0.41,0.011,0.579,0.011c0.94,0,2.396-0.114,2.396-0.114 C7.947,6.93,8.004,7.642,7.52,7.699c0,0-0.487,0.057-1.029,0.085l3.274,9.739l1.968-5.901l-1.401-3.838 C9.848,7.756,9.389,7.699,9.389,7.699C8.904,7.67,8.961,6.93,9.446,6.958c0,0,1.484,0.114,2.368,0.114 c0.94,0,2.397-0.114,2.397-0.114c0.485-0.028,0.542,0.684,0.057,0.741c0,0-0.488,0.057-1.029,0.085l3.249,9.665l0.897-2.996 C17.841,13.284,18.069,12.316,18.069,11.546z M19.889,7.686c0.039,0.286,0.06,0.593,0.06,0.924c0,0.912-0.171,1.938-0.684,3.22 l-2.746,7.94c2.673-1.558,4.47-4.454,4.47-7.771C20.991,10.436,20.591,8.967,19.889,7.686z M12,22C6.486,22,2,17.514,2,12 C2,6.486,6.486,2,12,2c5.514,0,10,4.486,10,10C22,17.514,17.514,22,12,22z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">\u30ef\u30fc\u30c9\u30d7\u30ec\u30b9<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-telegram wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/drpommy\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 128 128\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M28.9700376,63.3244248 C47.6273373,55.1957357 60.0684594,49.8368063 66.2934036,47.2476366 C84.0668845,39.855031 87.7600616,38.5708563 90.1672227,38.528 C90.6966555,38.5191258 91.8804274,38.6503351 92.6472251,39.2725385 C93.294694,39.7979149 93.4728387,40.5076237 93.5580865,41.0057381 C93.6433345,41.5038525 93.7494885,42.63857 93.6651041,43.5252052 C92.7019529,53.6451182 88.5344133,78.2034783 86.4142057,89.5379542 C85.5170662,94.3339958 83.750571,95.9420841 82.0403991,96.0994568 C78.3237996,96.4414641 75.5015827,93.6432685 71.9018743,91.2836143 C66.2690414,87.5912212 63.0868492,85.2926952 57.6192095,81.6896017 C51.3004058,77.5256038 55.3966232,75.2369981 58.9976911,71.4967761 C59.9401076,70.5179421 76.3155302,55.6232293 76.6324771,54.2720454 C76.6721165,54.1030573 76.7089039,53.4731496 76.3346867,53.1405352 C75.9604695,52.8079208 75.4081573,52.921662 75.0095933,53.0121213 C74.444641,53.1403447 65.4461175,59.0880351 48.0140228,70.8551922 C45.4598218,72.6091037 43.1463059,73.4636682 41.0734751,73.4188859 C38.7883453,73.3695169 34.3926725,72.1268388 31.1249416,71.0646282 C27.1169366,69.7617838 23.931454,69.0729605 24.208838,66.8603276 C24.3533167,65.7078514 25.9403832,64.5292172 28.9700376,63.3244248 Z\" \/><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">Telegram<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-whatsapp wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wa.me\/85577601628\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M 12.011719 2 C 6.5057187 2 2.0234844 6.478375 2.0214844 11.984375 C 2.0204844 13.744375 2.4814687 15.462563 3.3554688 16.976562 L 2 22 L 7.2324219 20.763672 C 8.6914219 21.559672 10.333859 21.977516 12.005859 21.978516 L 12.009766 21.978516 C 17.514766 21.978516 21.995047 17.499141 21.998047 11.994141 C 22.000047 9.3251406 20.962172 6.8157344 19.076172 4.9277344 C 17.190172 3.0407344 14.683719 2.001 12.011719 2 z M 12.009766 4 C 14.145766 4.001 16.153109 4.8337969 17.662109 6.3417969 C 19.171109 7.8517969 20.000047 9.8581875 19.998047 11.992188 C 19.996047 16.396187 16.413812 19.978516 12.007812 19.978516 C 10.674812 19.977516 9.3544062 19.642812 8.1914062 19.007812 L 7.5175781 18.640625 L 6.7734375 18.816406 L 4.8046875 19.28125 L 5.2851562 17.496094 L 5.5019531 16.695312 L 5.0878906 15.976562 C 4.3898906 14.768562 4.0204844 13.387375 4.0214844 11.984375 C 4.0234844 7.582375 7.6067656 4 12.009766 4 z M 8.4765625 7.375 C 8.3095625 7.375 8.0395469 7.4375 7.8105469 7.6875 C 7.5815469 7.9365 6.9355469 8.5395781 6.9355469 9.7675781 C 6.9355469 10.995578 7.8300781 12.182609 7.9550781 12.349609 C 8.0790781 12.515609 9.68175 15.115234 12.21875 16.115234 C 14.32675 16.946234 14.754891 16.782234 15.212891 16.740234 C 15.670891 16.699234 16.690438 16.137687 16.898438 15.554688 C 17.106437 14.971687 17.106922 14.470187 17.044922 14.367188 C 16.982922 14.263188 16.816406 14.201172 16.566406 14.076172 C 16.317406 13.951172 15.090328 13.348625 14.861328 13.265625 C 14.632328 13.182625 14.464828 13.140625 14.298828 13.390625 C 14.132828 13.640625 13.655766 14.201187 13.509766 14.367188 C 13.363766 14.534188 13.21875 14.556641 12.96875 14.431641 C 12.71875 14.305641 11.914938 14.041406 10.960938 13.191406 C 10.218937 12.530406 9.7182656 11.714844 9.5722656 11.464844 C 9.4272656 11.215844 9.5585938 11.079078 9.6835938 10.955078 C 9.7955938 10.843078 9.9316406 10.663578 10.056641 10.517578 C 10.180641 10.371578 10.223641 10.267562 10.306641 10.101562 C 10.389641 9.9355625 10.347156 9.7890625 10.285156 9.6640625 C 10.223156 9.5390625 9.737625 8.3065 9.515625 7.8125 C 9.328625 7.3975 9.131125 7.3878594 8.953125 7.3808594 C 8.808125 7.3748594 8.6425625 7.375 8.4765625 7.375 z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">WhatsApp<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-linkedin wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/soarawee-weerasopone\/\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M19.7,3H4.3C3.582,3,3,3.582,3,4.3v15.4C3,20.418,3.582,21,4.3,21h15.4c0.718,0,1.3-0.582,1.3-1.3V4.3 C21,3.582,20.418,3,19.7,3z M8.339,18.338H5.667v-8.59h2.672V18.338z M7.004,8.574c-0.857,0-1.549-0.694-1.549-1.548 c0-0.855,0.691-1.548,1.549-1.548c0.854,0,1.547,0.694,1.547,1.548C8.551,7.881,7.858,8.574,7.004,8.574z M18.339,18.338h-2.669 v-4.177c0-0.996-0.017-2.278-1.387-2.278c-1.389,0-1.601,1.086-1.601,2.206v4.249h-2.667v-8.59h2.559v1.174h0.037 c0.356-0.675,1.227-1.387,2.526-1.387c2.703,0,3.203,1.779,3.203,4.092V18.338z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">LinkedIn\u3067\u30b7\u30a7\u30a2<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-mail wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"mailto:bhquro@bdms.co.th\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M19,5H5c-1.1,0-2,.9-2,2v10c0,1.1.9,2,2,2h14c1.1,0,2-.9,2-2V7c0-1.1-.9-2-2-2zm.5,12c0,.3-.2.5-.5.5H5c-.3,0-.5-.2-.5-.5V9.8l7.5,5.6,7.5-5.6V17zm0-9.1L12,13.6,4.5,7.9V7c0-.3.2-.5.5-.5h14c.3,0,.5.2.5.5v.9z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">\u30e1\u30fc\u30eb<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<style>\n\/* Hover effect for Social Dr Pom Block - Social Icons *\/\n.wp-block-social-links .wp-social-link {\n  transition: transform 0.2s ease, opacity 0.2s ease !important;\n}\n.wp-block-social-links .wp-social-link:hover {\n  transform: scale(1.15);\n  opacity: 0.9;\n}\n<\/style>\n\n<div class=\"dr-pom-academic-icons\" style=\"display: flex; gap: 16px; margin-top: 12px; align-items: center; justify-content: center;\">\n  \n  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/profile\/Soarawee-Weerasopone\" \n     target=\"_blank\" \n     rel=\"noopener\"\n     title=\"ResearchGate\u30d7\u30ed\u30d5\u30a3\u30fc\u30eb\"\n     aria-label=\"ResearchGate \u30d7\u30ed\u30d5\u30a3\u30fc\u30eb\u3092\u898b\u308b\"\n     style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #00CCBB; transition: transform 0.2s; display: inline-block;\"\n     onmouseover=\"this.style.transform='scale(1.15)'\"\n     onmouseout=\"this.style.transform='scale(1)'\">\n    <svg width=\"28\" height=\"28\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"currentColor\">\n      <path d=\"M19.586 0c-.818 0-1.508.19-2.073.565-.563.377-.97.936-1.213 1.68a3.193 3.193 0 0 0-.112.437 8.365 8.365 0 0 0-.078.53 9 9 0 0 0-.05.727c-.01.282-.013.621-.013 1.016a31.121 31.121 0 0 0 .014 1.017 9 9 0 0 0 .05.727 7.946 7.946 0 0 0 .077.53h.001c.024.115.06.262.112.438.243.743.65 1.303 1.213 1.68.565.376 1.255.564 2.073.564.8 0 1.536-.213 2.105-.603.57-.39.94-.916 1.175-1.65.076-.235.135-.558.177-.93a15.4 15.4 0 0 0 .063-1.207v-.512a.27.27 0 0 0-.273-.273h-2.95a.27.27 0 0 0-.274.273v.785c0 .228.0.343.273.343h1.337c.094 0 .14.045.14.137 0 .61-.063 1.043-.155 1.318-.182.546-.7 1.018-1.683 1.018-.654 0-1.135-.114-1.475-.356-.34-.244-.55-.585-.658-1.024a3.797 3.797 0 0 1-.111-.43 5.515 5.515 0 0 1-.06-.51 19.85 19.85 0 0 1-.025-.726c-.004-.28-.004-.628-.004-1.045 0-.418 0-.766.004-1.046a19.85 19.85 0 0 1 .025-.726 5.475 5.475 0 0 1 .06-.51 3.785 3.785 0 0 1 .111-.43c.108-.44.318-.78.658-1.024.34-.243.82-.357 1.475-.357.6 0 1.064.078 1.413.293.347.215.595.515.74.91.063.155.166.21.31.156l.967-.4c.15-.058.187-.18.13-.32a3.025 3.025 0 0 0-1.262-1.452C21.12.218 20.428.0 19.586 0zM8.512 4.32c-2.7 0-4.066.997-4.066 3.06v.04c0 1.92.992 2.83 3.046 2.83 1.27 0 2.038-.39 2.385-1.05h.13l.067.51c.04.2.207.34.41.34h.99V7.95c0-2.59-1.06-3.63-2.962-3.63zm-.18 1.61c1.118 0 1.628.56 1.628 1.86v.4l-1.65.16c-1.35.13-1.86.46-1.86 1.13v.04c0 .67.41 1.06 1.45 1.06.85 0 1.55-.32 1.93-.84.04-.06.13-.07.18-.02.05.03.07.1.07.16v.43c0 .26.13.42.34.42h1.05c.21 0 .34-.16.34-.42v-3.6c0-1.94-1.13-2.83-3.46-2.83-1.94 0-3.07.86-3.4 2.04l1.55.45c.18-.69.6-1.04 1.83-1.04zM2.135 16.314c-.587 0-1.066-.156-1.434-.469-.367-.312-.618-.704-.752-1.176-.034-.124-.061-.232-.082-.327a3.794 3.794 0 0 1-.044-.366 8.83 8.83 0 0 1-.022-.547C0 13.221 0 12.985 0 12.704c0-.281 0-.515.001-.704a8.81 8.81 0 0 1 .022-.547 3.802 3.802 0 0 1 .044-.366c.02-.094.048-.203.082-.328.134-.471.385-.864.752-1.176.368-.313.847-.469 1.434-.469.477 0 .892.087 1.246.262.353.175.622.443.806.804.044.083.083.157.117.222.034.066.069.144.105.235.022.054.011.099-.034.135l-.66.292c-.045.027-.082.013-.112-.045a4.043 4.043 0 0 0-.155-.27 1.247 1.247 0 0 0-.49-.495c-.225-.131-.522-.196-.892-.196-.402 0-.726.064-.972.193-.247.13-.422.302-.527.518-.027.045-.054.099-.082.16a1.39 1.39 0 0 0-.067.197 2.46 2.46 0 0 0-.05.282 5.51 5.51 0 0 0-.033.43c-.008.17-.013.376-.013.617 0 .242.005.448.013.618.008.17.02.314.034.43.013.117.03.21.05.282.02.072.042.137.066.197.105.216.28.39.527.518.246.13.57.193.972.193.4 0 .714-.07.94-.21.227-.14.394-.346.503-.617a2.43 2.43 0 0 0 .104-.395c.018-.123.027-.282.027-.477V13.2H2.34c-.04 0-.06-.02-.06-.062v-.5c0-.04.02-.062.06-.062h1.812c.04 0 .062.02.062.06v.5c0 .156-.005.296-.014.422a4.71 4.71 0 0 1-.04.342 1.732 1.732 0 0 1-.064.262c-.13.523-.402.913-.815 1.17-.413.255-.95.382-1.61.382z\"\/>\n    <\/svg>\n  <\/a>\n  \n  <a href=\"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-8387-3559\" \n     target=\"_blank\" \n     rel=\"noopener\"\n     title=\"ORCID iD\"\n     aria-label=\"ORCID\u30d7\u30ed\u30d5\u30a3\u30fc\u30eb\u3092\u8868\u793a\"\n     style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #A6CE39; transition: transform 0.2s; display: inline-block;\"\n     onmouseover=\"this.style.transform='scale(1.15)'\"\n     onmouseout=\"this.style.transform='scale(1)'\">\n    <svg width=\"28\" height=\"28\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"currentColor\">\n      <path d=\"M12 0C5.372 0 0 5.372 0 12s5.372 12 12 12 12-5.372 12-12S18.628 0 12 0zM7.369 4.378c.525 0 .947.431.947.947 0 .525-.422.947-.947.947-.525 0-.946-.422-.946-.947 0-.525.421-.947.946-.947zm-.722 3.038h1.444v10.041H6.647V7.416zm3.562 0h3.9c3.712 0 5.344 2.653 5.344 5.025 0 2.578-2.016 5.025-5.325 5.025h-3.919V7.416zm1.444 1.303v7.444h2.297c3.272 0 4.022-2.484 4.022-3.722 0-2.016-1.284-3.722-4.097-3.722h-2.222z\"\/>\n    <\/svg>\n  <\/a>\n  \n  <a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=lTgsRMUAAAAJ&#038;hl=en\" \n     target=\"_blank\" \n     rel=\"noopener\"\n     title=\"Google Scholar\"\n     aria-label=\"Google Scholar \u30d7\u30ed\u30d5\u30a3\u30fc\u30eb\u3092\u8868\u793a\"\n     style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #4285F4; transition: transform 0.2s; display: inline-block;\"\n     onmouseover=\"this.style.transform='scale(1.15)'\"\n     onmouseout=\"this.style.transform='scale(1)'\">\n    <svg width=\"28\" height=\"28\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"currentColor\">\n      <path d=\"M5.242 13.769L0.5 9.5 12 1l11.5 8.5-4.742 4.269C17.548 11.249 14.978 9.5 12 9.5c-2.977 0-5.548 1.748-6.758 4.269zM12 10a7 7 0 1 0 0 14 7 7 0 0 0 0-14z\"\/>\n    <\/svg>\n  <\/a>\n  \n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Question I Get Asked Most<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhy Cambodia? Why not stay in Thailand or go straight to a private hospital in Bangkok?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For eight years, this was the question my friends, colleagues, and even some patients kept asking me. And honestly, for a long time, I struggled to answer it well \u2014 because the real answer wasn\u2019t a single sentence. It was a journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">In April 2024, I was invited by Bangkok Hospital Headquarters (BHQ) MSO Training to share that journey as a CME lecture. The title was <em>\u201cFrom Royal Hospital to BHQ: 8 Years of Precious Urology Experience at BDMS Cambodia.\u201d<\/em> Standing in that auditorium \u2014 the same hospital where I was, as it turns out, born in 1984 \u2014 I finally had a chance to put the whole story together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This blog post is that story. It\u2019s about how a newly graduated urologist with no roadmap ended up pioneering several \u201cfirsts\u201d in Cambodian urology, training in Taiwan and Japan, and eventually being recruited to Bangkok Hospital Headquarters. But more than that, it\u2019s about what eight years of working in a developing healthcare market taught me \u2014 lessons I think any young doctor, or anyone building something from scratch, might find useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"9923\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/cme-bangkok-hospital-e-brochure\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CME-Bangkok-hospital-E-brochure.webp?fit=1536%2C1536&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1536,1536\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"BHQ MSO CME Lecture, 17 April 2024 \u2014 From Royal to BHQ\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CME-Bangkok-hospital-E-brochure.webp?fit=800%2C800&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CME-Bangkok-hospital-E-brochure.jpg?resize=800%2C800&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\u30bd\u30a2\u30e9\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30fb\u30a6\u30a3\u30fc\u30e9\u30bd\u30dd\u30f3\u535a\u58eb\uff08\u30dd\u30e0\u535a\u58eb\uff09\uff1aBHQ MSO CME \u8b1b\u6f14\u4f1a\u30dd\u30b9\u30bf\u30fc\uff1a\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u304b\u3089BHQ\u3078\u3001BDMS\u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u3067\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u7d4c\u9a138\u5e74\u30012024\u5e744\u670817\u65e5\" class=\"wp-image-9923\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Setting the Scene: Urology in Cambodia<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before I tell my story, you need to understand the landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">Cambodia, as of today, has roughly <strong>120 Khmer urologists<\/strong> for a population of over 16 million. The country\u2019s three big government hospitals \u2014 Calmette, Khmer-Soviet Friendship, and Preah Kossamak \u2014 together produce about <strong>10 new urologists per year<\/strong>. For comparison, that\u2019s a tiny fraction of what Thailand graduates annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The private healthcare market in Cambodia is sharply divided:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"translation-block\"><strong>Upper-class Cambodians and expatriates<\/strong> typically fly to Bangkok or Singapore for serious medical care. Bangkok Hospital, Bumrungrad, Phyathai, Mount Elizabeth \u2014 these are the names they trust.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"translation-block\"><strong>Middle and lower-class patients<\/strong> rely on government hospitals or local clinics, some of which still operate out of converted shophouses.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">That left a narrow but interesting gap in the middle: international-standard private hospitals located <em>inside<\/em> Cambodia, serving patients who couldn\u2019t or wouldn\u2019t travel. That\u2019s where Royal Bangkok Hospital \u2014 part of the BDMS network \u2014 came in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are two BDMS hospitals in Cambodia:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"928\" height=\"580\" data-attachment-id=\"9972\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/royal-phnom-penh-hospital\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?fit=928%2C580&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"928,580\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Royal Phnom Penh Hospital \u2014 BDMS Cambodia\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?fit=800%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?resize=800%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"Royal Phnom Penh Hospital \u2014 100-bed JCI-accredited BDMS Center of Excellence in Cambodia\" class=\"wp-image-9972\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?w=928&amp;ssl=1 928w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?resize=300%2C188&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?resize=768%2C480&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-Phnom-Penh-hospital.webp?resize=18%2C12&amp;ssl=1 18w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Royal Phnom Penh Hospital \u2014 100 beds, 14 ICU beds, 5 ORs, JCI-accredited, opened November 2014.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"451\" data-attachment-id=\"9971\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/royal-angkor-hospital\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?fit=1032%2C582&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1032,582\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Royal Angkor International Hospital, Siem Reap\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Royal Angkor International Hospital, Siem Reap \u2014 BDMS&amp;#8217;s first hospital in Indochina, opened 2006&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?fit=800%2C451&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.jpg?resize=800%2C451&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Royal Angkor International Hospital, Siem Reap \u2014 BDMS's first hospital in Indochina, opened 2006\" class=\"wp-image-9971\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?resize=1024%2C577&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?resize=300%2C169&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?resize=768%2C433&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?resize=18%2C10&amp;ssl=1 18w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Royal-angkor-hospital.webp?w=1032&amp;ssl=1 1032w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Royal Angkor International Hospital, Siem Reap \u2014 BDMS&#8217;s first hospital in Indochina, opened 2006<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/1VRCPE9GDvpVDp5o8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u75c5\u9662<\/a><\/strong> \u2014 100 beds, 14 ICU beds, 5 operating rooms, JCI-accredited, and a BDMS Center of Excellence. Officially opened in November 2014 with Cambodia\u2019s then-Prime Minister Hun Sen attending the ceremony.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/ckVaL5QJR3XaZTa88\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30a2\u30f3\u30b3\u30fc\u30eb\u30fb\u30a4\u30f3\u30bf\u30fc\u30ca\u30b7\u30e7\u30ca\u30eb\u75c5\u9662<\/a><\/strong> \u2014 32 beds, 7 ICU beds, 2 operating rooms, located in Siem Reap. This was actually BDMS\u2019s first hospital in Indochina, opened back in 2006.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When I arrived in 2016, both hospitals existed. But the urology service? That was a different story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"372\" height=\"580\" data-attachment-id=\"9959\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/my-staff-tag\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?fit=372%2C580&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"372,580\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Royal Phnom Penh Hospital staff ID, October 2016\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone&amp;#8217;s Royal Phnom Penh Hospital staff ID card \u2014 first Thai urologist appointment, October 2016&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?fit=372%2C580&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?resize=372%2C580&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone's Royal Phnom Penh Hospital staff ID card \u2014 first Thai urologist appointment, October 2016\" class=\"wp-image-9959\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?w=372&amp;ssl=1 372w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?resize=192%2C300&amp;ssl=1 192w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/My-staff-tag.webp?resize=8%2C12&amp;ssl=1 8w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 372px) 100vw, 372px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone&#8217;s Royal Phnom Penh Hospital staff ID card \u2014 first Thai urologist appointment, October 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">October 2016: The \u201cWeekend Urologist\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I graduated from my urology residency at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in 2016. Like every Thai medical graduate, I had a government service obligation to fulfill. But I\u2019d also seen a job posting for a part-time Thai urologist at Royal Phnom Penh, and on a whim, I applied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">I was hired as a <strong>weekend urologist<\/strong>. I\u2019d fly into Phnom Penh on Saturday morning, see patients Saturday and Sunday, and fly back to Bangkok Sunday night. I did this so often I qualified for Bangkok Airways Premier Plus status \u2014 which honestly says more about how often I was on planes than about how busy the clinic was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When I started, the urology setup at Royal Phnom Penh was, to put it mildly, <strong>very limited<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>One part-time Khmer urology professor who came in on-call from a government hospital, bringing his own instruments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A monopolar endoscopic transurethral surgery setup borrowed from elsewhere<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>No flexible scopes, no lithotripsy, no laser<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A waiting room where patients literally had to wait until the doctor drove in<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There were three of us Thai urologists rotating on weekends. Within months, two of them resigned. The math just didn\u2019t work \u2014 we\u2019d often see zero patients in a day, and even when we did, we couldn\u2019t actually treat them. A patient with a ureteric stone? All we could offer was medical expulsive therapy and prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By early 2018, I was the last Thai urologist standing. Home Alone, basically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"469\" data-attachment-id=\"9913\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/arjan-narintara\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?fit=1412%2C828&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1412,828\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Dr. Narintara Boonjongcharoen \u2014 Hospital Director, Royal Phnom Penh\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Narintara Boonjongcharoen (Arjan Narintara) \u2014 CEO of Royal Phnom Penh Hospital who transformed BDMS Cambodia urology service&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?fit=800%2C469&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.jpg?resize=800%2C469&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\u30ca\u30ea\u30f3\u30bf\u30e9\u30fb\u30d6\u30fc\u30f3\u30b8\u30e7\u30f3\u30c1\u30e3\u30ed\u30f3\u535a\u58eb\uff08\u30a2\u30eb\u30b8\u30e3\u30f3\u30fb\u30ca\u30ea\u30f3\u30bf\u30e9\uff09 \u2014 \u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u75c5\u9662CEO\u3001BDMS\u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30b5\u30fc\u30d3\u30b9\u3092\u5909\u9769\" class=\"wp-image-9913\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?resize=1024%2C600&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?resize=300%2C176&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?resize=768%2C450&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?resize=18%2C12&amp;ssl=1 18w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arjan-Narintara.webp?w=1412&amp;ssl=1 1412w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dr. Narintara Boonjongcharoen (Arjan Narintara) \u2014 Hospital Director of Royal Phnom Penh Hospital who transformed BDMS Cambodia urology service<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mid-2017: The Turning Point<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The single most important thing that happened during this period had nothing to do with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">In mid-2017, <strong>Dr. Narintara Boonjongcharoen (Arjan Narintara) <\/strong> became the new Hospital Director of Royal Phnom Penh. I noticed the change almost immediately \u2014 equipment requests that had been pending for a year started moving. Within months, we received a <strong>ureteroscope and lithoclast<\/strong> (a pneumatic stone fragmentation device).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It sounds small. It wasn\u2019t. For the first time, I could actually treat an emergency ureteric stone obstruction. After a year of feeling like I was practicing medicine with my hands tied, I had a tool. One tool. But it was something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">The lesson here was bigger than the equipment: <strong>leadership matters.<\/strong> Without a director who understood what a urology service actually needs and was willing to push procurement through, none of what came later would have happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2018: The Game Changer \u2014 4th Generation ESWL<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">In mid-2018, Arjan Narintara approached me with an idea that, frankly, sounded too ambitious for our setup: install a <strong>4th-generation Extracorporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy (ESWL) machine<\/strong> from Taiwan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video\"><video height=\"1080\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1920 \/ 1080;\" width=\"1920\" controls src=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/LITEMED-ESWL-4th-gen-clip.mp4\"><\/video><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">To put this in context: at the time, even most hospitals in Thailand were still using 3rd-generation ESWL. The 4th-generation machine had a built-in real-time ultrasound feeding into an AI tracking system developed by the Taiwanese manufacturer. The theory was simple \u2014 when you breathe, your kidney moves with your diaphragm. Older machines couldn\u2019t compensate, so reported targeting accuracy was around 82%. The new machine pushed that to <strong>98%<\/strong>, meaning fewer wasted shocks and less unnecessary tissue damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The catch: it cost twice as much as a 3rd-gen machine and couldn\u2019t be moved (no mobile-truck service like in Thailand). The deal Royal Phnom Penh struck was elegant \u2014 the Taiwanese company supplied the equipment, the hospital provided the certified treatment room, and we shared the profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">Because the machine required real-time monitoring during every session, the director\u2019s requirement was that a urologist had to be physically present for every case. So in 2018, I flew to Taiwan for a 5-day intensive training at <strong>Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou branch<\/strong> \u2014 and that single trip changed the trajectory of my career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">In October 2018, we performed Royal Phnom Penh\u2019s first-ever ESWL case. In November, we held a national kidney stone seminar that was covered by Cambodian TV news. By January 2019, the <strong>Urological Association of Asia (UAA)<\/strong> \u2014 whose Secretary General, Professor Allen Chiu, was Taiwanese \u2014 chose Royal Phnom Penh as the venue for an Asian School of Urology Educational Symposium. The Dean of Chiang Mai University Faculty of Medicine, Professor Bannakij Lojanapiwat, attended as a Thai faculty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">In his August 2019 <em>Asian Urology<\/em> journal report, Professor Chiu wrote a line that has stuck with me ever since:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u201cIf I go alone I go fast, but if we go together we go far.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That symposium opened a door I didn\u2019t know existed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"447\" data-attachment-id=\"9915\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/asian-urology-newsletter-2\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?fit=1024%2C572&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1024,572\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Asian Urology newsletter cover, August 2019\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Asian Urology newsletter \u2014 cover featuring Dr. Pom and Royal Phnom Penh ESWL symposium coverage, January 2019&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?fit=800%2C447&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?resize=800%2C447&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Asian Urology newsletter \u2014 cover featuring Dr. Pom and Royal Phnom Penh ESWL symposium coverage, January 2019\" class=\"wp-image-9915\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?w=1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?resize=300%2C168&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?resize=768%2C429&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Asian-Urology-newsletter-2.webp?resize=18%2C10&amp;ssl=1 18w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Asian Urology newsletter \u2014 cover featuring Dr. Pom and Royal Phnom Penh ESWL symposium coverage, January 2019<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"414\" height=\"311\" data-attachment-id=\"9956\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/mar-2019-flying-to-taiwan\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?fit=414%2C311&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"414,311\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Departing for CGMH fellowship, March 2019\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone departing Bangkok for 3-month robotic urology fellowship at CGMH Linkou, Taiwan, March 2019&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?fit=414%2C311&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?resize=414%2C311&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone departing Bangkok for 3-month robotic urology fellowship at CGMH Linkou, Taiwan, March 2019\" class=\"wp-image-9956\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?w=414&amp;ssl=1 414w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MAR-2019-flying-to-Taiwan.webp?resize=16%2C12&amp;ssl=1 16w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 414px) 100vw, 414px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone departing Bangkok for 3-month robotic urology fellowship at CGMH Linkou, Taiwan, March 2019<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"523\" data-attachment-id=\"9922\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/cgmh-linkou\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?fit=1891%2C1237&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1891,1237\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"CGMH Linkou \u2014 2019 robotic urology fellowship site\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;CGMH Linkou branch \u2014 nearly 4,000 beds and pioneering robotic urology center where Dr. Pom completed his 2019 fellowship&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?fit=800%2C523&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.jpg?resize=800%2C523&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"CGMH Linkou branch \u2014 nearly 4,000 beds and pioneering robotic urology center where Dr. Pom completed his 2019 fellowship\" class=\"wp-image-9922\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?resize=1024%2C670&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?resize=300%2C196&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?resize=768%2C502&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?resize=1536%2C1005&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?resize=18%2C12&amp;ssl=1 18w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?w=1891&amp;ssl=1 1891w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CGMH-Linkou.webp?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">CGMH Linkou branch \u2014 nearly 4,000 beds and pioneering robotic urology center where Dr. Pom completed his 2019 fellowship<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2019: Going Full-Time, Going International<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">Two months after the ESWL symposium, <strong>CGMH Linkou offered me a 3-month observing clinical fellowship in Robotic Urology<\/strong> \u2014 working with the da Vinci surgical system. CGMH is the largest hospital network in Taiwan with over 10,000 beds across seven branches; the Linkou branch alone has nearly 4,000 beds and was one of the earliest adopters of robotic surgery in Asia, having installed its first da Vinci in 2006.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I trained under Professor Yu and got to know Professor Pang, the Deputy Director of CGMH and himself a urologist. The schedule was packed \u2014 different operating rooms with different professors every morning, robotic simulator sessions every evening after work, and conferences on Saturdays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">By June 2019, I\u2019d seen enough. I converted to <strong>full-time urologist<\/strong> at Royal Phnom Penh, and I was given a new mandate: open a urology service at Royal Angkor International Hospital in Siem Reap as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"433\" height=\"614\" data-attachment-id=\"9947\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/june-2019-with-arjan-damrongpan-1\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?fit=433%2C614&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"433,614\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Overflow audience \u2014 Royal Phnom Penh seminar, June 2019\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Royal Phnom Penh Hospital urology seminar audience overflow, June 2019 \u2014 Cambodia urology event&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?fit=433%2C614&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?resize=433%2C614&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u75c5\u9662\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30bb\u30df\u30ca\u30fc\u3001\u8074\u8b1b\u8005\u304c\u6ea2\u308c\u308b\u30012019\u5e746\u6708 \u2014 \u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30a4\u30d9\u30f3\u30c8\" class=\"wp-image-9947\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?w=433&amp;ssl=1 433w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?resize=212%2C300&amp;ssl=1 212w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-1.webp?resize=8%2C12&amp;ssl=1 8w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 433px) 100vw, 433px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u75c5\u9662\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30bb\u30df\u30ca\u30fc\u3001\u8074\u8b1b\u8005\u304c\u6ea2\u308c\u308b\u30012019\u5e746\u6708 \u2014 \u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30a4\u30d9\u30f3\u30c8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">The first urology seminar at Royal Angkor \u2014 and crucially, the <em>second<\/em> one, held two weeks later alongside <strong>Dr. Damrongpan Watanachote, then Director of the Urology Center at Bangkok Hospital HQ<\/strong> \u2014 drew overflow crowds. Cambodian TV news covered both events. For the first time, the Royal Angkor urology service had a face and a story attached to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"418\" height=\"314\" data-attachment-id=\"9950\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/june-2019-with-arjan-damrongpan-4\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?fit=418%2C314&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"418,314\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Dr. Pom and Dr. Damrongpan Watanachote at Royal Phnom Penh, June 2019\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Pom alongside Dr. Damrongpan Watanachote at Royal Phnom Penh urology seminar, June 2019&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?fit=418%2C314&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?resize=418%2C314&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"2019\u5e746\u6708\u3001\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30bb\u30df\u30ca\u30fc\u3067\u306e\u30dd\u30e0\u533b\u5e2b\u3068\u30c0\u30e0\u30ed\u30f3\u30d1\u30f3\u30fb\u30ef\u30bf\u30ca\u30c1\u30e7\u30fc\u30c8\u533b\u5e2b\uff08Dr. Damrongpan Watanachote\uff09\" class=\"wp-image-9950\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?w=418&amp;ssl=1 418w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-With-Arjan-Damrongpan-4.webp?resize=16%2C12&amp;ssl=1 16w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 418px) 100vw, 418px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">2019\u5e746\u6708\u3001\u30ed\u30a4\u30e4\u30eb\u30fb\u30d7\u30ce\u30f3\u30da\u30f3\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u30bb\u30df\u30ca\u30fc\u3067\u306e\u30dd\u30e0\u533b\u5e2b\u3068\u30c0\u30e0\u30ed\u30f3\u30d1\u30f3\u30fb\u30ef\u30bf\u30ca\u30c1\u30e7\u30fc\u30c8\u533b\u5e2b\uff08Dr. Damrongpan Watanachote\uff09<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"389\" data-attachment-id=\"9951\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/june-2019-with-arjan-damrongpan-5\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?fit=1024%2C498&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1024,498\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"June 2019 with Arjan Damrongpan 5\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?fit=800%2C389&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?resize=800%2C389&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9951\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?w=1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?resize=300%2C146&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?resize=768%2C374&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/June-2019-with-Arjan-Damrongpan-5.webp?resize=18%2C9&amp;ssl=1 18w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That same year:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>July 2019<\/strong> \u2014 selected as one of 16 Asia-Pacific young urologists for the AUSTEG-AUA hands-on laparoscopic workshop. Met Professor Maxwell Meng, head of Minimally Invasive Urology at UCSF, and started discussing a possible US fellowship.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>August 2019<\/strong> \u2014 held a Japanese-language urology seminar in Phnom Penh, targeting the roughly 2,000 Japanese expatriates living in Cambodia. This is where I first met Mr. Matsushita Hironori, then Director of Sunrise Hospital (the Japanese hospital in Phnom Penh).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>October 2019<\/strong> \u2014 second CGMH fellowship, this time in Andrology at the Kaohsiung branch, mentored by Professor Wang and Professor Po-Hui Chiang. Professor Chiang published the seminal 1991 paper that established <strong>color Doppler ultrasound as the standard diagnostic tool for erectile dysfunction<\/strong> \u2014 a technique still used in clinics worldwide today.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>2019\u5e7411\u6708<\/strong> \u2014 first 60W Holmium laser installed at Royal Phnom Penh, the first such laser in Cambodia. This finally gave us a serious tool for both stone disease and BPH (enlarged prostate).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>2019\u5e7411\u6708<\/strong> \u2014 invited as international faculty at the 2019 Cambodian Urological Society meeting (a recurring honor I\u2019d receive every year afterwards).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2020-2021: COVID, and a Strange Kind of Golden Age<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph translation-block\">January 2020 \u2014 international faculty at the <strong>3rd Asian Urological Oncology Forum in Kaohsiung<\/strong>. Things were going well. My UCSF training was on the calendar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then COVID hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll never forget standing at Phnom Penh airport in March 2020, watching the departure board fill up with red CANCELLED notices in real time. My UCSF fellowship was put on indefinite hold. I went home to Bangkok and spent two months on <strong>leave without pay<\/strong>, cooking on the floor of my apartment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But here\u2019s the strange thing: COVID, for all its devastation, created what I now think of as the <strong>golden age of the Royal Phnom Penh urology clinic<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why? Because Cambodian patients couldn\u2019t fly out anymore. The wealthy patients who used to go to Bangkok or Singapore for care suddenly had to stay home. And we were one of the few international-standard urology services they could access without leaving the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When borders cautiously reopened in June 2020, getting back to Phnom Penh became a 18-hour ordeal \u2014 van from BHQ at 5 AM, three hours stuck at the Poipet border crossing waiting for stamps, then a long drive on Cambodia\u2019s two-lane highways where dogs, cows, and children could appear in front of you at any time. I\u2019d arrive at Royal Phnom Penh around 11 PM. And the next morning, I\u2019d start work at 8 AM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For two years, my routine was:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Six days a week<\/strong> of clinic, often running until 7 PM or later<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Monthly road trips<\/strong> to Royal Angkor (about 6 hours each way) to maintain the Siem Reap service<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Every return to Thailand<\/strong> meant 28 days of quarantine (14 each way) \u2014 and leave without pay each time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I stayed in Cambodia. I learned digital marketing \u2014 Google, Facebook, Instagram, and the messaging apps Cambodian patients actually used \u2014 anything to keep in touch with people while the borders were shut. During that period I also ran <strong>tele-urology consultations<\/strong> between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, because for many patients it was the only way to be seen at all. That was a pandemic-era arrangement under Cambodian conditions at the time; in my current practice at Bangkok Hospital Headquarters I do not provide teleconsultation, remote prescribing, or medical advice through personal messaging channels \u2014 all appointments are arranged through the hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In February 2021, we got our first <strong>flexible ureterorenoscope<\/strong>, which made <strong>RIRS (Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery)<\/strong> possible for stones not suitable for ESWL. In September 2021, we opened <strong>Cambodia\u2019s first dedicated Men\u2019s Health Clinic<\/strong>, anchored around Penile ESWT (Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy for erectile dysfunction).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the end of 2021, the urology department I\u2019d inherited as a one-instrument-and-a-prayer operation in 2016 was running real, modern, multi-modality care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" data-attachment-id=\"9933\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/feb-2021-flexible-urs\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?fit=1280%2C960&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1280,960\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Flexible ureterorenoscope arrival, February 2021\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;First flexible ureterorenoscope at Royal Phnom Penh, February 2021 \u2014 enabling RIRS (Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery) in Cambodia&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?fit=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"First flexible ureterorenoscope at Royal Phnom Penh, February 2021 \u2014 enabling RIRS (Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery) in Cambodia\" class=\"wp-image-9933\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?resize=16%2C12&amp;ssl=1 16w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/FEB-2021-Flexible-URS.webp?w=1280&amp;ssl=1 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First flexible ureterorenoscope at Royal Phnom Penh, February 2021 \u2014 enabling RIRS (Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery) in Cambodia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2022-2023: Continuing to Build<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After borders fully reopened, I went back to school \u2014 again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>September 2022<\/strong> \u2014 one-month Endourology observing clinical fellowship at <strong>Juntendo University Hospital, Tokyo<\/strong>, under Professor Shigeo Horie.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>August 2022<\/strong> \u2014 attended the first-ever REZUM case at BHQ in Bangkok, planning ahead for what I wanted to bring to Cambodia.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>July 2023<\/strong> \u2014 held the first Cambodian seminars on <strong>REZUM Water Vapor Therapy<\/strong> for BPH, with strong support from Dr. Niwat Inthrawichian, the new Royal Phnom Penh director.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>2023\u5e749\u6708<\/strong> \u2014 selected as a <strong>Young Asia Urologist<\/strong> for the UAA Young Urology Leadership Forum in Dubai.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>October 2023<\/strong> \u2014 performed Cambodia\u2019s <strong>first REZUM case<\/strong>, making Royal Phnom Penh the country\u2019s pioneer in minimally invasive BPH treatment.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After five years, our 4th-generation ESWL service had treated over <strong>200 patients<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"718\" height=\"539\" data-attachment-id=\"9978\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/sep-2023-young-urology-leadship-forum-2-with-prof-allen-chui\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?fit=718%2C539&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"718,539\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"With Professor Allen W. Chiu, UAA Secretary General \u2014 Dubai 2023\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone with Professor Allen W. Chiu, UAA Secretary General, at the Young Urology Leadership Forum, Dubai 2023&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?fit=718%2C539&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?resize=718%2C539&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone with Professor Allen W. Chiu, UAA Secretary General, at the Young Urology Leadership Forum, Dubai 2023\" class=\"wp-image-9978\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?w=718&amp;ssl=1 718w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEP-2023-Young-Urology-leadship-forum-2-with-Prof-Allen-chui.webp?resize=16%2C12&amp;ssl=1 16w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 718px) 100vw, 718px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone with Professor Allen W. Chiu, UAA Secretary General, at the Young Urology Leadership Forum, Dubai 2023<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Highlight Case: The Elephant Attack<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you ask me which case best captures what working at Royal Phnom Penh actually means, it\u2019s not one of the technically complex robotic cases. It\u2019s an elephant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A Malaysian veterinarian working with an NGO that protects Cambodia\u2019s wild elephants was charged after an anesthetic dart failed to take effect. The elephant\u2019s tusk struck him in the right flank, causing a <strong>liver injury and Grade 4 kidney injury<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The hospital\u2019s helicopter ambulance system \u2014 something we\u2019d built but never tested under this kind of pressure \u2014 flew him in from the field. Trauma surgery, hepatobiliary surgery, urology, ICU, anesthesia, radiology, blood bank \u2014 everyone converged. Multiple disciplines, one patient, decisions in real time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He walked out of the hospital alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That case made the international newspapers. But what I remember about it isn\u2019t the press coverage. It\u2019s what it told me about the team we\u2019d built: that on the day it really mattered, every department worked. The systems worked. The training paid off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Eight Years Taught Me<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If I had to compress eight years into a few honest lessons, here\u2019s what I\u2019d say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>1. \u201cBe ready and be kind.\u201d<\/strong> This is my actual takeaway slide from the BHQ lecture, and I mean it literally. Be ready \u2014 keep training, keep learning, keep your hands sharp \u2014 because you don\u2019t know when the door will open. Be kind, because the people you meet on the way up are also the people you\u2019ll meet on the way through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>2. The blue ocean isn\u2019t easy.<\/strong> Friends used to tell me, \u201cCambodia must be easy compared to Thailand \u2014 it\u2019s a blue ocean.\u201d It wasn\u2019t. The competitors are BHQ itself, plus Bumrungrad, Phyathai, Mount Elizabeth, and a dozen Bangkok hospitals \u2014 the wealthy patients in Phnom Penh don\u2019t compare you to local clinics, they compare you to the best hospitals in the region. You have to earn the right to even be considered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>3. Mentors are everything.<\/strong> Arjan Narintara, who pushed through procurement and built the marketing engine. Arjan Damrongpan, who connected me to the broader Bangkok urology community. The CGMH professors who opened doors in Taiwan. Professor Allen Chiu, whose UAA platform put a brand-new Cambodian urology service onto the Asian map. None of this was solo work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>4. Leadership decides what\u2019s possible.<\/strong> The same hospital, with the same staff, but a different director, was a different hospital. When Arjan Narintara arrived, things that had been \u201cstuck for budget reasons\u201d started moving within weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>5. Crisis can be opportunity.<\/strong> COVID was awful in every imaginable way. It was also the period during which the Royal Phnom Penh urology clinic finally got the patient volume to validate everything we\u2019d built.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" data-attachment-id=\"9962\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/nov-2023-cambodia-2\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?fit=1086%2C814&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1086,814\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"2023 Cambodian Urological Society group photo\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Group photo at the 2023 Cambodian Urological Society annual meeting \u2014 Khmer urologists and international faculty&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?fit=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Group photo at the 2023 Cambodian Urological Society annual meeting \u2014 Khmer urologists and international faculty\" class=\"wp-image-9962\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?resize=16%2C12&amp;ssl=1 16w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NOV-2023-Cambodia-2.webp?w=1086&amp;ssl=1 1086w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Group photo at the 2023 Cambodian Urological Society annual meeting \u2014 Khmer urologists and international faculty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why I\u2019m Now at BHQ<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2024, I was offered the chance to join Bangkok Hospital Headquarters as a full-time urologist specializing in robotic surgery, men\u2019s health, and testosterone replacement therapy. After eight years in Cambodia, and with a family to think about, I accepted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s a personal coda to this. When I was preparing the BHQ lecture, my parents reminded me of something I\u2019d half-forgotten: I was <strong>born at Bangkok Hospital Headquarters<\/strong> on August 2, 1984. The pediatrician who delivered me was Dr. Premruedee. The room had a broken air conditioner. My parents told me they never imagined I\u2019d one day come back to work in the building where I was born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a way, the eight years in Cambodia were the long way home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u304a\u5ba2\u69d8\u304b\u3089\u3088\u304f\u3044\u305f\u3060\u304f\u3054\u8cea\u554f<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: Where did Dr. Pom train as a urologist?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone (Dr. Pom) completed his urology residency at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in 2016. He then completed a Robotic Surgery Fellowship at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan (2019), an Endourology Observership at Juntendo University Hospital, Tokyo (2022), and is currently a Research Scholar &amp; Clinical Observer at the Scott Department of Urology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston (2025\u20132026), under Prof. Mohit Khera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: What hospitals did Dr. Pom work at in Cambodia?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Dr. Pom worked at the two BDMS hospitals in Cambodia \u2014 Royal Phnom Penh Hospital (a 100-bed JCI-accredited Center of Excellence in the capital) and Royal Angkor International Hospital (a 32-bed hospital in Siem Reap). He served as a part-time weekend urologist from October 2016 and converted to full-time in June 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: What was the first 4th-generation ESWL machine in Cambodia?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Royal Phnom Penh installed Cambodia\u2019s first 4th-generation ESWL (Extracorporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy) machine from Taiwan in October 2018. The technology was actually more advanced than what was available in most Thai hospitals at the time, with built-in real-time ultrasound and AI-driven targeting that improved shockwave accuracy from approximately 82% to 98%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: When did Cambodia get its first Men\u2019s Health Clinic?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Royal Phnom Penh opened Cambodia\u2019s first dedicated Men\u2019s Health Clinic in September 2021, anchored around Penile ESWT (Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy) for erectile dysfunction. Dr. Pom led the development of the service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: When was the first REZUM (Water Vapor Therapy) procedure performed in Cambodia?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Cambodia\u2019s first REZUM Water Vapor Therapy procedure for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) was performed by Dr. Pom at Royal Phnom Penh in October 2023. REZUM is a minimally invasive treatment that uses targeted steam to reduce prostate volume, preserving sexual and urinary function.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q: Where does Dr. Pom currently practice?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A: Dr. Pom currently practices at Bangkok Hospital Headquarters (BHQ) in Bangkok, Thailand, specializing in robotic and minimally invasive urological surgery, men\u2019s health, and testosterone replacement therapy. He maintains professional connections with the BDMS Cambodia hospitals and continues to support Cambodian urology training through international faculty roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Have a question about urology, men\u2019s health, or TRT? You can <a href=\"\/ja\/\u8a3a\u5bdf\u4e88\u7d04\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u76f8\u8ac7\u3092\u4e88\u7d04\u3059\u308b<\/a> with Dr. Pom at Bangkok Hospital Headquarters.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u30dd\u30e0\u533b\u5e2b\u306f\u3001\u9031\u672b\u306e\u30ab\u30f3\u30dc\u30b8\u30a2\u3067\u306e\u6ccc\u5c3f\u5668\u79d1\u533b\u304b\u3089\u3001Royal Phnom Penh\u75c5\u9662\u3067ESWL\u3001\u7537\u6027\u5065\u5eb7\u3001REZUM\u306e\u30d1\u30a4\u30aa\u30cb\u30a2\u3068\u306a\u3063\u305f8\u5e74\u9593\u306e\u9053\u306e\u308a\u3092\u5171\u6709\u3057\u307e\u3059\u3002.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":185281453,"featured_media":10012,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"Dr. Pom shares his 8-year journey from weekend urologist in Cambodia to BHQ \u2014 pioneering ESWL, men's health, and REZUM at Royal Phnom Penh.","jetpack_seo_html_title":"From Royal to BHQ: 8 Years Practicing Urology in Cambodia","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvZHJzb2FyYXdlZXVyb2xvZ3kuY29tXC93cC1jb250ZW50XC91cGxvYWRzXC8yMDI2XC8wNFwvQ01FLUJhbmdrb2staG9zcGl0YWwtRS1icm9jaHVyZS0xMDI0eDEwMjQuanBnIiwidHh0IjoiRnJvbSBSb3lhbCB0byBCSFE6IDggWWVhcnMgb2YgUHJhY3RpY2luZyBVcm9sb2d5IGluIENhbWJvZGlhIFx1MjAxNCBBIFBlcnNvbmFsIEpvdXJuZXkiLCJ0ZW1wbGF0ZSI6ImhpZ2h3YXkiLCJmb250IjoiIiwiYmxvZ19pZCI6MjUxMDExMDc2fQ.BE1AGcI51na42F02BECKrsvO1MyxNOJkrVW3t9voPCAMQ"},"version":2,"media_source":"media-library","attached_media":[{"id":10012,"url":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8-Years-in-Cambodia.webp","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1522],"tags":[1794,1795,1519,1383,1532,1392,1731,1797,1753],"class_list":["post-9911","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-miscellaneous","tag-bangkok-hospital","tag-bhq","tag-covid-19","tag-eswl","tag-men-health","tag-phnom-penh","tag-rezum","tag-robotic-urology","tag-thailand"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pgZdrK-2zR","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8-Years-in-Cambodia.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9911","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/185281453"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9911"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9911\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11103,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9911\/revisions\/11103"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9911"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9911"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoaraweeurology.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9911"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}