Entrance to the new Pattaya City
Hospital.
Veechan Souksi
It took much longer and cost much more than expected, but Pattaya
Hospital is now fully open for business.
The government hospital - originally budgeted for 177 million baht but
eventually costing more than 200 million baht to open - has been open for
outpatient service and limited inpatient service since May 2013 with fewer than
30 beds. Another 30 percent of the 86 beds came online in November and all of
the 86 beds are to be available this month, more than two years late.
A look inside Pattaya City Hospital.
Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome originally announced in June 2010
that full service at the Soi Buakaow facility would be available by the end of
2011.
As a public facility, Pattaya Hospital offers free primary health services for
people with state insurance and lowest prices for tourists, city officials
promised. The 24-hour center has five medical departments in addition to the
outpatient clinic open during daytime hours only.
The ground floor is used for patient registration, outpatients and the pharmacy.
The second floor is utilized for operating theaters and the eye and dental
clinics. The third floor houses the inpatients and the intensive-care unit.
The fourth floor of the hospital is reserved for VIPs with special patient
rooms. Administration and conference rooms occupy the fifth floor.
The hospital’s construction expense was justified by claims about the demands of
Pattaya’s booming tourist numbers, residential development and the need for a
facility that provided essential medical services while being esthetically
attractive to patients.
At first glance, the goal of providing service at affordable public hospital
prices seems to have been met at the new hospital. And one cannot help but be
impressed by its decor and well-informed staff.
