Overlooking a gentle bend in the Ping River, the ancient city of Chiang Mai which flanks it and the looming Doi Suthep Mountains beyond, Rajavej Chiang Mai Hospital is a prominent city landmark which has also been a destination for health and healing for nearly thirty years.
Rajavej Chiang Mai Hospital opened its doors in 1997, a handful of years before Thailand began introducing universal healthcare reforms in 2001, the start of Thailand’s short road to becoming one of the few nations in the region where over 99.5% of its population enjoys near-universal health coverage. Rajavej Chiang Mai joined the government’s health care coverage programmes as a partner hospital at their inception, while also expanding its own private care coverage, with a focus on being a family friendly general hospital.
“Rajavej Chiang Mai was one of the first private hospitals to open in the North,” said Dr. Narong Laohaveripap, CEO of Rajavej Hospital. “Unfortunately, the Asian Economic Crisis hit that year and our ability to work through the crisis was all due to the dedication of numerous local doctors from Chiang Mai University who came on board and helped us to weather that storm. Today we have expanded our hospital to the point where we provide over 150 beds for in-patients, overseen by 40 full time physicians and a total of 200 rotating physicians covering a great many fields of expertise. All are available on call or by appointment. Each day we provide service to Thai social security patients whose programmes have allowed us to expand our services and equipment, local private patients, as well as between 30-40 expatriate and tourists.”
Rajavej Chiang Mai has spent the past many years upgrading its facilities and expanding upon its services, today focusing on preventative care by offering numerous health checkup programmes as well as preventative vaccinations and specialist consultations to help patients avoid illness and bad health. At the same time, the hospital has also been expanding its other divisions, currently providing more operating rooms, ER rooms and other specialist services.
“We provide an a la carte service for our private patients with our major divisions being our Emergency Room Department, Out Patient Department (Orthopaedic, Plastic Surgery, Ophthalmology, ENT, Dermatology, Neurology, Urology, OB-Gyne, Gastroenterology ) , Paediatrics, Health Checkup Department, Dentistry, Haemodialysis, Radiology and Physical Therapy Departments as well as our Laboratories. Our latest department, which is developing very nicely, is the Aesthetics Department which we have been growing over the past couple of years.
“We have full time medical translators who can speak English, Japanese, Korean (on call on weekdays) and also Filipino, most of whom have a working knowledge of medicine, to help facilitate our non-Thai patients’ needs,” continued Dr. Narong. “As a general hospital, Rajavej is a great destination as it is in the city centre and is easy to access. Our rooms are absolutely huge with fantastic views. Our prices are lower than other private hospitals in Chiang Mai because we have been here for so long. We have working relationships with the best doctors in the city who can bring their specialty and expertise to any problem. Not only that, with nearly three decades’ experience, we understand medical culture, Thai culture as well as the complexities of international hospital systems. We can help gently navigate this complex labyrinth in a way which is courteous, convenient, comfortable and most conducive to bridging the gaps between various health care providers and ours.”
Rajavej Chiang Mai spent the pandemic upgrading their facilities resulting in some of the best hospital rooms to be found in the North of Thailand. Many rooms now come with attached living rooms, kitchens and expansive balconies offering breathtaking views. Their in-house specialty chef has worldwide experience in developing health and controlled food, having created a full menu designed not just for patients’ needs but also their families, so that the patient’s support systems can all be cared for while they recuperate.
“We want our patients not to have to worry about anything other than getting better,” continued Dr. Narong. “That is why we have a department which works with insurance companies around the world to help with insurance claims. We have 24-hour ER doctors on standby, we have large connecting rooms for families to stay in next to the patient and we even have positive pressure rooms to keep PM2.5 particles at bay. So, we can all breathe easy.”
“The hospital has attained, and constantly strives to reach, all relevant international standards, and is the chosen hospital for many of the city’s four and five star hotels as well as private companies, who have concierge or partnership deals with the hospital.
“Rajavej Chiang Mai is currently offering extremely attractive health packages, each one designed for a specific demographic. You can have a tentative start with a basic programme designed for young adults at only 1,390 baht which offers up to 12 tests. Or go all the way up to a premium programme for men or women over the age of 50 which are still very reasonable at only 5,090 baht (27 tests) and 6,790 baht (28 tests) for men and women respectively.
“Simply get in touch with the hospital and have a brief consultation to see which package best suits you and the hospital is open seven days a week for you to undergo your tests. A physician will then discuss the results with you on the same day and offer any advice needed for your continued good health. There will be translators on hand should you need help, many of whom have medical experience, being EKG techs or registered nurse. This is a very special low season package which will be available until the end of May.
“Rajavej Chiang Mai also offers these packages as gift vouchers, so next time you want to show someone some love or appreciation, consider this gift of health.
“With soaring temperatures, mosquitoes are coming indoors early this year to escape the heat, and the hospital wishes to warn the public that there could be an earlier-than-usual outbreak of dengue this year. With that in mind, from 2,500 baht (for 1 dose, 4,800 for 2 doses), Rajavej is now offering dengue vaccines, which prevents you from up to four different strains of dengue. This vaccine is especially important to the elderly, overweight and those with underlying diseases such as diabetes or heart diseases.
“There are numerous other vaccinations available, from herpes to pneumonia, shingles to influenza. Simply call for a consultation at our Health Checkup and Outpatient Department.
“Being a family hospital, Rajavej offers care from the prenatal to the palliative. Its pediatric centre takes over 100 patients per day with large in-patient rooms designed to support family and friends. Elderly patients in need of constant care can retain a room or a suite in the hospital for palliative care with nurses and staff on call.
“Lastly, I would like to talk about our new Aesthetics Department, which has now acquired a great number of new equipment and operating rooms. We offer all manner of aesthetics care and services from ultra sound parallel beam tools to non-invasive dermatological aesthetic treatments such as Sofwave,” ended Dr. Narong.
If you are looking for a friendly, convenient, reasonably priced, full-service general hospital for your and your family’s needs, then stop by or make an appointment at Rajavej Chiang Mai and put your health in their care.
For any emergencies, such as road accidents, Rajavej Chiang Mai also offers to help facilitate claims, assist in communicating with police and procuring documents and contacting the insurance provider – all up to the tune of 30,000 baht (if documents are complete). And should you need any operations, Rajavej Chiang Mai is more affordable than other private hospitals here in Chiang Mai, while providing the same international standard of care.
Rajavej Hospital Chiang Mai : 316/1 Chiangmai-Lamphun Road Watket Sub-district Mueng District Chaingmai 50000
Tel: 052-011999 ext. 111
Facebook: bit.ly/3uMKJH1
LINE Official: https://lin.ee/eV6jEa7
Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/b16sEbhQcrscVCjX7
E-mail : english@rajavejchiangmai.com
Website : rajavejchiangmai.com
