Where Is The Closest Non-Inflated Price Hospital?

[Jingthing]

Using the greed driven U.S.A. model of health care pricing is the path to damnation.

[Bagwan]

The Navy hospital at Sattahip is just outside the main Naval Base gates. The Queen Sirikit is at least 2 kilometres away from there i.e. two entirely different places.

Recently I attended a well known rip off hospital in Pattaya with a blistered toe that had turned septic. I was quoted by the Emergency Room 5K baht to have it cleaned and dressed. I declined and said I would treat it myself. The price was immediately slashed to 3.5K baht. I kept walking. My local pharmacy (which is owned and run by a fully qualified Pharmacist believe it or not) sold me a bottle of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide and a broad based antibiotic for 150 baht. Problem solved.

BTW the only reliable test for prostate cancer is to undergo a biopsy procedure. A clown at Bumrungrad told me that he would carry it out under a general aenesthetic and I would be in hospital for three days. I told him that in the UK it is a walk in/walk out procedure and no analgesic was used. I had undergone the test on three separate occasions. A doctor having a feel round cannot reach around the back of the prostate gland where cancerous growths may be even though the parts he/she can reach seem smooth and normal.

The PSA test has been almost abandoned as it is totally inacurate and conventional medical wisdom is that it does more harm than good. PSA level should be below 3 but I have lived with a regular reading of 13.5 to 14 for the past 15 years.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Thanks everyone for the helpful replies!! On the topic of two tiered pricing, I'm aware of it and can usually handle it. The process at most hospitals is to write up the bill way at the end before checking out. But cost needs to be a discussion item before/during admission.

It's one thing to try on double pricing for tourists, it's quite another when they try it for mixed Thai/Western children, who of course have Thai citizenship and everything. During intake it's very important to do everything in Thai, and ensure that the Thai rates are used. And then for all treatments and medications you need to make sure that they don't use the most expensive imported ones; also very basic medications and medical supplies can add up remarkably fast during a hospital stay.

[Soboringtochooseaname]

Anybody gave birth at one of the Pattaya Sriracha Satthahip Chonburi PUBLIC hospitals ?

Is it a lot cheaper than private ones and where did you wife go ?

Thanks.

[hhfarang]

Not Pattaya, but my wife and I have been going to a non profit private hospital in Bangkok for years. The service is excellent at about half the price of the "for profit" private facilities with the same level of care and expertise. It's sponsored by the Catholic church and is called St. Louis Hospital. It's on Sathorn road in Bangkok near the Surasak BTS station.

http://www.saintlouis.or.th/main_page.php

[Sheryl]

Anybody gave birth at one of the Pattaya Sriracha Satthahip Chonburi PUBLIC hospitals ?

Is it a lot cheaper than private ones and where did you wife go ?

Thanks.

Public hospitals will always be vastly cheaper than private. If the woman is a Thai national, her delivery at a public hospital should be free of charge.

I would advise against district level public hospitals though as they are poorly equipped to handle other than normal delivery. Stick to provincial hospitals or military hospitals. Provincial hospital in Chonburi would be fine,m ditto Queen Sirikit Hospital inb Sattahiip. Don't even think about government hospital in Pattya or (non-military) Statahip as these are only district level hospitals. Anything goes wrong and they'd have to send her elsewhere.

[HappyInCM]

Which hospital in the area has the best doctors? Best in the sense of best education and certification -- board certified (preferably in the west), educated in the west etc ... BPH is very new and shiny but many/most? of the doctors are not even board certified in Thailand.

[JSixpack]

Which hospital in the area has the best doctors? Best in the sense of best education and certification -- board certified (preferably in the west), educated in the west etc ... BPH is very new and shiny but many/most? of the doctors are not even board certified in Thailand.

Yeah, most are actually motorcy taxi drivers on call as needed.

Just go to Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic and be done with it.

[HappyInCM]

Which hospital in the area has the best doctors? Best in the sense of best education and certification -- board certified (preferably in the west), educated in the west etc ... BPH is very new and shiny but many/most? of the doctors are not even board certified in Thailand.

Yeah, most are actually motorcy taxi drivers on call as needed.

Just go to Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic and be done with it.

I really, really don't understand your response. Are you saying I have to go to the west to find a Thai board certified doctor? That makes no sense at all.

Check out BNH, Bangkok Hospital Bangkok, and Bumrungrad; all have plenty of Thai and western board certified doctors. Yes, the quality of the doctor matters.

[tropo]

I've been to Queen Sikirit and it was OK. Bring a book as you can have a long wait, but my dental specialist spoke perfect English.

I doubt Gavin would mind reprinting this from his recent email blast. Just one example of their monthly specials.

HEALTH CHECK UP PROGRAM

- physical examination

- chest x ray

- electrocardiogram

- ultrasound of the whole abdomen

- urine examination

- complete blood count

- blood sugar count

- cholesterol

- triglyceride

- HDL

- LDL

- BUN (kidney funtion)

- creatinine (kidney function test)

- SGOT (liver function test)

- SGPT (liver function test)

- Alkaline phosphatase

- uric acid

Normal price: 7,650 baht. Promotion price: 4,890 baht.

From urine examination down (plus more) can be done at Pattaya Lab for 700 baht. That leaves 4,190 baht for physical examination, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram and ultrasound of whole abdomen - is this really a good deal even at the promotion price?

[craigt3365]

I've been to Queen Sikirit and it was OK. Bring a book as you can have a long wait, but my dental specialist spoke perfect English.

I doubt Gavin would mind reprinting this from his recent email blast. Just one example of their monthly specials.

HEALTH CHECK UP PROGRAM

- physical examination

- chest x ray

- electrocardiogram

- ultrasound of the whole abdomen

- urine examination

- complete blood count

- blood sugar count

- cholesterol

- triglyceride

- HDL

- LDL

- BUN (kidney funtion)

- creatinine (kidney function test)

- SGOT (liver function test)

- SGPT (liver function test)

- Alkaline phosphatase

- uric acid

Normal price: 7,650 baht. Promotion price: 4,890 baht.

From urine examination down (plus more) can be done at Pattaya Lab for 700 baht. That leaves 4,190 baht for physical examination, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram and ultrasound of whole abdomen - is this really a good deal even at the promotion price?

I can't really say. But I believe I did the same thing, or close to it, a few years ago at Bumrungrad and it was at least double that price...maybe triple...can't remember the exact price. But it sure is a nice hospital!

[tropo]

I've been to Queen Sikirit and it was OK. Bring a book as you can have a long wait, but my dental specialist spoke perfect English.

I doubt Gavin would mind reprinting this from his recent email blast. Just one example of their monthly specials.

HEALTH CHECK UP PROGRAM

- physical examination

- chest x ray

- electrocardiogram

- ultrasound of the whole abdomen

- urine examination

- complete blood count

- blood sugar count

- cholesterol

- triglyceride

- HDL

- LDL

- BUN (kidney funtion)

- creatinine (kidney function test)

- SGOT (liver function test)

- SGPT (liver function test)

- Alkaline phosphatase

- uric acid

Normal price: 7,650 baht. Promotion price: 4,890 baht.

From urine examination down (plus more) can be done at Pattaya Lab for 700 baht. That leaves 4,190 baht for physical examination, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram and ultrasound of whole abdomen - is this really a good deal even at the promotion price?

I can't really say. But I believe I did the same thing, or close to it, a few years ago at Bumrungrad and it was at least double that price...maybe triple...can't remember the exact price. But it sure is a nice hospital!

I'd be really curious as to the cost of the electrocardiogram, chest x-ray and the whole adbomen ultrasound.

To me it seems like, by listing the individual blood tests instead of as a group (kidney function, liver function, lipid profile etc) they're trying to look like a better deal than it really is.

Edited March 15, 2012 by tropo

[craigt3365]

I've been to Queen Sikirit and it was OK. Bring a book as you can have a long wait, but my dental specialist spoke perfect English.

I doubt Gavin would mind reprinting this from his recent email blast. Just one example of their monthly specials.

HEALTH CHECK UP PROGRAM

- physical examination

- chest x ray

- electrocardiogram

- ultrasound of the whole abdomen

- urine examination

- complete blood count

- blood sugar count

- cholesterol

- triglyceride

- HDL

- LDL

- BUN (kidney funtion)

- creatinine (kidney function test)

- SGOT (liver function test)

- SGPT (liver function test)

- Alkaline phosphatase

- uric acid

Normal price: 7,650 baht. Promotion price: 4,890 baht.

From urine examination down (plus more) can be done at Pattaya Lab for 700 baht. That leaves 4,190 baht for physical examination, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram and ultrasound of whole abdomen - is this really a good deal even at the promotion price?

I can't really say. But I believe I did the same thing, or close to it, a few years ago at Bumrungrad and it was at least double that price...maybe triple...can't remember the exact price. But it sure is a nice hospital!

I'd be really curious as to the cost of the electrocardiogram, chest x-ray and the whole adbomen ultrasound.

To me it seems like, by listing the individual blood tests instead of as a group (kidney function, liver function, lipid profile etc) they're trying to look like a better deal than it really is.

Bumrungrad's special price seems to be 7k:

http://www.bumrungrad.com/en/health-check-up-bangkok-thailand/check-up-packages

[Phil Conners]

EKG and ultrasound scan are expensive, so if you need them it's probably not a bad deal. But I wouldn't run through the whole package "just in case" unless I had some symptoms that would warrant it.

[lopburi3]

Below is what I paid last week at private hospital Vejthani in Bangkok as a discounted package price (most expensive item being stress test):

[Sheryl]

Which hospital in the area has the best doctors? Best in the sense of best education and certification -- board certified (preferably in the west), educated in the west etc ... BPH is very new and shiny but many/most? of the doctors are not even board certified in Thailand.

Yeah, most are actually motorcy taxi drivers on call as needed.

Just go to Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic and be done with it.

I really, really don't understand your response. Are you saying I have to go to the west to find a Thai board certified doctor? That makes no sense at all.

Check out BNH, Bangkok Hospital Bangkok, and Bumrungrad; all have plenty of Thai and western board certified doctors. Yes, the quality of the doctor matters.

Absolutely it matters, and you are quite correct both that Thailand has many Western-trained and board certified docs and that they are not to be found in Pattaya. Nor in most places outside of Bangkok.

You should bite the bullet and travel to Bangkok, or else make do with the long waits at Queen Sirikit. I live about the same distance from Bkk as the folks in Pattaya and i accept the need for a 2-3 hr trip each way to see a doctor (could be worse, and is for people further up-country). If I am ever faced with an emergency where I can't make that trip I'll go to the nearby military hospital.

[Bagwan]

In the past week I have made enquiries about having an ultrsound screening of my left calf. Prices quoted were:-

Bangkok Pattaya 6000 baht

Bumrungrad 8000 baht

Queen Sirikit 10000 baht Really!!

Queen Savang Vadhana Memorial 1200 baht

Guess where I went. I was seen to promptly and cheerfully. I was in and out in an hour.

[Sheryl]

I think the price quote from Queen Sirikit was a miscommunication. No way they charge 10,000 baht for an ultrasound.

[JSixpack]

Which hospital in the area has the best doctors? Best in the sense of best education and certification -- board certified (preferably in the west), educated in the west etc ... BPH is very new and shiny but many/most? of the doctors are not even board certified in Thailand.

Yeah, most are actually motorcy taxi drivers on call as needed.

Just go to Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic and be done with it.

I really, really don't understand your response. Are you saying I have to go to the west to find a Thai board certified doctor? That makes no sense at all.

Check out BNH, Bangkok Hospital Bangkok, and Bumrungrad; all have plenty of Thai and western board certified doctors. Yes, the quality of the doctor matters.

You aren't questioning the credentials of THE doctor. You're asking for an irrelevant headcount--which you can do yourself if you really want one; nobody here is gonna do that for you. Obviously you do have an internet connection. As for the public hospitals, nobody has done a headcount and nobody's gonna travel around getting one for you either.

All that matters is how qualified is the specific doctor you're gonna consult. BPH has some board-certified docs or access to such--as some are not full-time at BPH. Bumrungrad has many, but not ALL are board certfied.

So the procedure is to discern what area of your ol' bod hurts, look up the docs, and see if there's one BOARD CERTIFIED if that's what you want. (Not to address the question of just HOW significant is certification from a Thai board.) Best thing to do is get a recommendation here.

For many an ailment you don't need to pay extra for board certification. If I skin up my knee on the bike, pretty much any ol' doc will do for a patch and I don't want to pay B4000 for a Western-certified skin doc to swab on some alcohol.

Or you can just go to Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic as I said where you don't need to do a headcount. You'll certainly feel much more comfortable there.

[Soboringtochooseaname]

So it seems that QUEEN SIRIKIT and NAVY HOSPITAL at Satthahip are the best choices among public hospitals around Pattaya, but can I know which one is the best for you and if prices at these 2 public hospitals are exactly the same ?

Do they have some professors working there as they have in some Bkk publicc hospitals as Chula ?

Also, do you tip doctors when having treatment at public hospitals ? It seems that Thai tips thousands...

Thanks for all yoru info.

[Bagwan]

I think the price quote from Queen Sirikit was a miscommunication. No way they charge 10,000 baht for an ultrasound.

I think the price quote from Queen Sirikit was a miscommunication. No way they charge 10,000 baht for an ultrasound.

I hesitate to disagree with you Sheryl. I made it quite clear to two nurses that I spoke to that I wanted an ultrasound scan carried out on my left calf. Since I viewed that procedure as much the same as taking a photograph, ie was totally safe and routine, I said that I did not want to wait around to see a doctor uneccessarily, I made it clear that I would make a donation to the hospital, the amount being the difference between they, the QS would charge me, and what the robber barons at the Pattaya hospital were asking. I stated that the amount of money in itself was not important, but that my preference would rather give to a worthy cause than be robbed by others. A telephone call was made, presumably to the Radiography department, and I was told 10K baht. I queried the amount which was repeated English and Thai. I made the point that I did not require the services of the Psychiatric department and left.

I have no inkling of whether the nurses I spoke to were misled or misheard but as far as I was concerned it was totally out of order.

As I have reported elsewhere, a friend of mine had to pay the surgeon at QS 40K baht under the table before he performed some work on his knee. The surgeon didn't do much of a job on it either, and my friend is now paying at another hospital to get things put right.

[23962323]

As I have reported elsewhere, a friend of mine had to pay the surgeon at QS 40K baht under the table before he performed some work on his knee. The surgeon didn't do much of a job on it either, and my friend is now paying at another hospital to get things put right.

gees ,and I thought my knee surgery was going to be 12000 bucks ,tops

Should be a thread of abandoning all Thai hospitals,and what options prevail.

Yes did get estimates previously for knee,then for $300 return flight,found where Siemens Magnetron MRI imaging suite was situated ,$70 for scan,showing exactly where and what was needed,rang a few recommended surgeons, next day private room,3 surgeons,all done and dusted for $800.

Suppose all MRI machines do the same job,but those state of the art Siemens Magnetron ones are truly exceptional, whole body imagining for $300,OK takes a couple of hours but anything growing or undetected sure gets picked up quickly,like viewing in 3D,inside, outside,upside down and back to front.

Edited April 2, 2012 by 23962323

[JSixpack]

I said that I did not want to wait around to see a doctor uneccessarily, I made it clear that I would make a donation to the hospital, the amount being the difference between they, the QS would charge me, and what the robber barons at the Pattaya hospital were asking. I stated that the amount of money in itself was not important

Must have sounded bizarre and an invitation to see how much they could take you for. I can quite see how a miscommunication would occur. And after all you did say the amount wasn't important.

But you didn't make the same proposition at the Siricha public hospital.

Don't overcomplicate things with a lot of nonsense ("robber barons") and offer to throw money around. Just follow the nornal procedures.

Edited April 2, 2012 by JSixpack