Private Hospitals Chiang Mai Recommendations for Maternity

[stament]

I've seen a few old threads on here but they are archived so I've had to create a ne thread.

Wanted to get some feedback on best hospitals to give birth as well as approximate cost for natural delivery.

Have read quite a few threads recommending Lanna and Ram amongst others. We will be based near. kad Farang on the way to Hang Dong. I also read a couple of bad comments relating to Hang Dong hospital which put me off.

Any feedback on prices and quality/satisfaction would be most appreciated.

[Dante99]

Public hospitals can be just fine, no need to limit your choices to private.

Suan Dok and SriPhat have done well.

I suggest that you focus on choosing a doctor if you don't have one yet.

[uptheos]

Public hospitals can be just fine, no need to limit your choices to private.

Suan Dok and SriPhat have done well.

I suggest that you focus on choosing a doctor if you don't have one yet.

Excellent advice

[stament]

thanks for the advice, but wouldn't one normally go to a hospital first and then get a doctor assigned to them rather than the other way round?

totally fine with govt hospitals just that we have insurance, but if govt one is better then fine with that too.

had one bad experience at Central Chiang Mai which apart from the worrying treatment the place was a bit weird and not like a normal hospital.

not sure if anyone else has been there but based on my experience certainly one to avoid.

[northernjohn]

thanks for the advice, but wouldn't one normally go to a hospital first and then get a doctor assigned to them rather than the other way round?

totally fine with govt hospitals just that we have insurance, but if govt one is better then fine with that too.

had one bad experience at Central Chiang Mai which apart from the worrying treatment the place was a bit weird and not like a normal hospital.

not sure if anyone else has been there but based on my experience certainly one to avoid.

You can go to the new Bangkok hospital which has all the newest up to date equipment. It won't help you one bit if you get a butcher for a doctor. First find a doctor then ask his or her advice. If you don't trust him or her get a midwife and have it done at home. It has been successfully done so billions of times

[stament]

ok well tell me how to as in England it doesn't work like that. you get whoever is on duty at the time of delivery.

[elektrified]

I'll make a recommendation. He's the guy who delivered my child 6 years ago at Sriphat. Professor Sompong Trungtawatchai. He has a clinic across from the President Hotel, or since you have insurance, he is the department head at Bangkok Hospital, Chiang Mai. http://www.bangkokhospital-chiangmai.com/en/centers-and-clinics/index.php#ui-tabs-1

Edit: The wife says he no longer practices at Sriphat; only at Bangkok Hospital.

Edited May 24, 2015 by elektrified

[cardinalblue]

Probably best to choose an ob/gyn and a pedi doctor as that will determine what hospital. Lanna hosp off super hwy was fine - price was reasonable - i want to say under 50k but could be off by 10k likecould have been 40k or 35k. Now Bkk CM is closest private int hosp to us but we continue to go to Lanna for med care (wife and child)...

Why chance going to a gov hosp as long as you have the funding for a private one....Some of the doctors are the same but not the service nor the equipment....

[Thailand]

Dr Siam at Klaimor has delivered hundreds of babies over the years. Hospital has recently been greatly extended with new facilities.

[hanuman2543]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

Edited May 24, 2015 by hanuman2543

[chiang mai]

Many Doctors in Thailand will work at several hospitals during the course of a month, best to pick the doctor and then agree with him which hospital.

[stament]

Hi Chiang Mai, how does one go abou picking one'a doctor if we have no experience or recommendations? what is the normal procedure over here as everybody seems to recommend picking the doctor but nobody is advising the procedure/approach for us to do that. is there a top 10 list of best doctors or something ;-)

[Dante99]

Look at the pinned topic at the top of the TV Chiang Mai page for recommended doctors. Talk to your friends and neighbors, ask every pregnant lady you see.

[stament]

thanks Dante didn't know if I was missing out on a set procedure. unfortunately no friends, neighbours or relatives in the same boat otherwise we would have asked.

[stament]

I should add we are not currently in CM or even Thailand so won't be approaching pregnant ladies and I guess they'll be thankful too!

[elektrified]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

[Dante99]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

[naboo]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

2013 through Sripat, I paid 14,000B for emergency caesarean, plus another 6000B for the room and after care of mother - my daughter's 3 days in an incubator were in the government section and covered by the government 30B scheme.

Having said that, I'd recommend the Mae Lae Dek hospital (Mother and Baby hospital) behind the OP's Central Hospital, google coordinates: 18.773049, 98.994904

[northernjohn]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

Seems to me if the prices went up 10,000 baht in one year. Here we are 5 years later and they have only gone up 24,000 baht. Not to shabby at all. Of course prices from hospital to hospital will vary. Not sure if the Doctors all charge the same rate.

I know when I had my hip replaced he gave me a ball park price for Sriphat. The Ram and Rajavej. I only made the one payment to the hospital it included his price. The difference in his estimates was 150,000 baht. the total bill came in 17,000 baht below his lowest guess. It was at Rajavej. I had a price from Bangkok 100,000 baht over the highest price here.

[elektrified]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

2013 through Sripat, I paid 14,000B for emergency caesarean, plus another 6000B for the room and after care of mother - my daughter's 3 days in an incubator were in the government section and covered by the government 30B scheme.

Having said that, I'd recommend the Mae Lae Dek hospital (Mother and Baby hospital) behind the OP's Central Hospital, google coordinates: 18.773049, 98.994904

You sure about that? Maybe you avoided the "contract price" by showing up as an emergency? I remember in 2009 when we left the hospital there was a new sign put up in the hallway of the 12th?? Floor indicating the price increase effective Jan. 1, 2010 for both natural birth and caesarean. I think caesarean went up to 36K THB at the time.

Mae Lae Dek Hospital is fine and they are very nice there. We sometimes go there for routine healthcare for our child. Best to get there at 12:00 and get a queue card for the 1:00 clinics.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

for natural delivery.

This should narrow it down. Can everyone focus on this requirement and suggest one or more doctors based on that?

I can recommend the ob-gyn we used, and indeed we picked him first, then when the time came we went to Ram because that happens to be where he practises. (Other than his clinic, which we used for all the check-ups.)

"Natural" however it was not, this seriously hard to find.

(Unless natural just refers to giving birth without a C-section, but I don't think that's what it means. And neither does Wikipedia, I just checked. )

[elektrified]

for natural delivery.

This should narrow it down. Can everyone focus on this requirement and suggest one or more doctors based on that?

I can recommend the ob-gyn we used, and indeed we picked him first, then when the time came we went to Ram because that happens to be where he practises. (Other than his clinic, which we used for all the check-ups.)

"Natural" however it was not, this seriously hard to find.

(Unless natural just refers to giving birth without a C-section, but I don't think that's what it means. And neither does Wikipedia, I just checked. )

Good point. I didn't pay much attention to the term. Ours was not "natural delivery" either. Normal delivery or vaginal delivery would be more correct.

[stament]

to clarify natural not c section sorry for confusion.

[stament]

to clarify vaginal delivery not c section sorry for confusion.

[elektrified]

ok well tell me how to as in England it doesn't work like that. you get whoever is on duty at the time of delivery.

Which begs the question... How far along is your wife? Dr. Sompong and others at Sriphat (maybe elsewhere too?) will only accept new patients if they are in their first 2-3 months of pregnancy.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

to clarify natural not c section sorry for confusion.

Ok. A couple more points in that case:

While natural vs C-section is sometimes up to the preference of the mother, there are also cases when it really should be the mother's medical condition that drives the choice between one or the other. What also happens is that you start out trying for natural, but that at some point the doctor advises to go for the cut.

In general, the medical community in Thailand (doctors, hospitals) and also Thai mothers are a lot more inclined to go for a C-section, also in cases where a vaginal birth would still be preferred in the West. Many mothers prefer it for all kinds of valid or invalid reasons, hospitals make more money on C-sections, and doctors can plan for it at a convenient time and know they'll be done in under an hour.

This makes it somewhat difficult to come to the best decision: clearly when there is a medical need for a C-section then that really is best. But at the same time you don't want to end up with a C-section just so the doctor is done sooner and the hospital makes more money. Don't underestimate this decision.

And then finally, it would be good to stop thinking of all vaginal births as 'natural'. Typically in Thailand, a vaginal birth still means being hooked up to all kinds of machines, drugged to your eyeballs and then cut open like a fish. Just in a different place. Then out come the baby tongs at some point, and there you go.

I've experienced both, with the Mrs. opting for a C-section the second time, mostly because the first time was such an ordeal. With a C-section the procedure is quicker and more convenient for all involved, but recovery can take slightly longer. Thai doctors are really good at C-sections though, it's a laser bikini-line cut that completely disappears. Anyway both ways suck, just in slightly different ways.

Sorry if this doesn't sound very romantic, but it is the reality of the procedure in typical Thai hospitals. Now, it's not all bad, there are plenty nurses around for assistance, nice rooms, great care and check-ups after birth, etc. But.. when it comes to the procedure itself, 'natural' is not the first word that comes to mind.

It's really best to keep your eye on the end result, which is worth it.

(Putting babies in those incubators for half a day or so after birth is also just something they do.. Probably because they can charge money for it. Anyway I could write another very long post about the financials of it all. )

Edited May 26, 2015 by WinnieTheKhwai

[stament]

hi thanks for the detailed response. we are not choosing one birth method over another for any reason other than the fact that my wife gas had two relatively pain free births in her words via vaginal delivery so barring any complications which would necessitate a cesarian delivery we'd expect the same delivery as for the first two. money isn't an issue and we would always ow the advice of doctors.

furthermore we are covered by insurance for upto thb 125k for total maternity costs not just the delivery itself.

[hanuman2543]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

Maybe my post wasn't clear enough. The 50000 Baht included all visits to the Kulapat Clinic (medicine, ultrasound etc). The bill at Sriphat was 32000 Baht including vaccination for a newborn.

[elektrified]

Kulapat Clinic during pregnancy and Sripat for delivery. If no Cesarean is necessary around 50000 Baht. We did the same and were really satisfied. That was last year. Can not recommend Lanna. On our first visit there, the female doctor in charge tried to overcharge my gf and me.

With all due respect..........we paid 14K or 16K THB at Sriphat in 2009! In January of 2010, prices went up to 26K THB. 50K - even years later sounds like you were overcharged - considerably.

If the rate of price increase between 2009 and 2010 continued, 50,000 is in the ball park for 5 years later.

Depends on a lot of things, type of room, length of stay, services required and requested, different doctors charge different amounts .......

But 50,000 does seem to be on the high side,

Maybe my post wasn't clear enough. The 50000 Baht included all visits to the Kulapat Clinic (medicine, ultrasound etc). The bill at Sriphat was 32000 Baht including vaccination for a newborn.

You were stung! Ouch!

[northernjohn]

to clarify natural not c section sorry for confusion.

Ok. A couple more points in that case:

While natural vs C-section is sometimes up to the preference of the mother, there are also cases when it really should be the mother's medical condition that drives the choice between one or the other. What also happens is that you start out trying for natural, but that at some point the doctor advises to go for the cut.

In general, the medical community in Thailand (doctors, hospitals) and also Thai mothers are a lot more inclined to go for a C-section, also in cases where a vaginal birth would still be preferred in the West. Many mothers prefer it for all kinds of valid or invalid reasons, hospitals make more money on C-sections, and doctors can plan for it at a convenient time and know they'll be done in under an hour.

This makes it somewhat difficult to come to the best decision: clearly when there is a medical need for a C-section then that really is best. But at the same time you don't want to end up with a C-section just so the doctor is done sooner and the hospital makes more money. Don't underestimate this decision.

And then finally, it would be good to stop thinking of all vaginal births as 'natural'. Typically in Thailand, a vaginal birth still means being hooked up to all kinds of machines, drugged to your eyeballs and then cut open like a fish. Just in a different place. Then out come the baby tongs at some point, and there you go.

I've experienced both, with the Mrs. opting for a C-section the second time, mostly because the first time was such an ordeal. With a C-section the procedure is quicker and more convenient for all involved, but recovery can take slightly longer. Thai doctors are really good at C-sections though, it's a laser bikini-line cut that completely disappears. Anyway both ways suck, just in slightly different ways.

Sorry if this doesn't sound very romantic, but it is the reality of the procedure in typical Thai hospitals. Now, it's not all bad, there are plenty nurses around for assistance, nice rooms, great care and check-ups after birth, etc. But.. when it comes to the procedure itself, 'natural' is not the first word that comes to mind.

It's really best to keep your eye on the end result, which is worth it.

baby.jpg

(Putting babies in those incubators for half a day or so after birth is also just something they do.. Probably because they can charge money for it. Anyway I could write another very long post about the financials of it all. )

Actually none of those are natural. Natural would be with out machines and drugs. In Mexico they have a carving of women in child birth they are standing up with there legs out spread. That was the omnitech in Oaxaca.