Walk in Clinic - Pattaya

[sglad]

If you have a serious medical condition which you do not wish to give any details, then go to Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital and see doctor there.

For a general practitioner at a reasonable cost, you could try the Banglamung Clinic on Pattaya Tai Rd/South Pattaya Road at intersection with Third Road. The clinic is on opposite side of the road from Friendship Market almost at Third Road.

There are two clinics there, one is a private clinic and the other one is associated with Banglamung Hospital. I have used this clinic for routine medical conditions and was satisfied.Cuts, minor infections, vaccines, etc.

Reasonable suggestions but I would have taken a more sensible approach. If I was seriously ill or having a medical emergency, I wouldn't be asking questions on this board and would have gone straight to the A&E or ER. Therefore I don't think the OP is seriously ill or having a medical emergency.

However, if I had a medical ailment, known or unknown, that is not a medical emergency, I would consult an experienced GP like Dr Olivier as suggested. If he could treat whatever it was I had, then I wouldn't need to go any further. But if he recommended further investigation and/or treatment beyond his expertise, then I would let him recommend the relevant specialist/hospital and ask for a referral letter. After all, I don't know Pattaya let alone its doctors and medical specialists. But someone like Dr Olivier with his experience and contacts would know and would be able to refer me to a doctor who was an expert on my condition and to a facility that fitted my budget.

Going straight to an expensive facility like Bangkok Hospital could be counterproductive. Firstly, if I went directly to the A&E or ER, I might be clogging a system that is already busy and depriving someone else of urgent medical attention. In Singapore we impose a financial penalty on non-emergency patients who clog up the A&E when they could have easily gone to their neighbourhood GP for their problems.

Secondly, if I walked over to the general reception area of a hospital (not the A&E or ER), I would likely be attended to by a triage nurse or, worse, a general clerk who would likely refer me to whatever specialist on duty based on my reported symptoms. If the specialist I was assigned could help me with my medical problem, then well and good. My only inconvenience is that I would probably have to pay more than what I would pay at a GP. However, the triage nurse or the general clerk could interpret my symptoms wrongly leading to dire consequences as happened to my friend's grandmother in Chiang Mai. She had suffered persistent back pain over 24 hours and was taken to a well-known private hospital by a visiting relative.The receptionist on duty assigned her to an orthopaedic specialist and there was a long wait. But what was really happening was that my friend's grandma was having a slow heart attack and her only symptoms were the back pain and some stomach upset. She collapsed while waiting to see the specialist. Later they found out that women tended to have different symptoms to men during a heart attack. Had my friend's grandma gone to see her regular GP who knew her medical history, she would probably have been rushed to to the A&E sooner. The point is, it might be a better idea to establish a relationship with a GP especially if you're a resident or a regular visitor to Pattaya, instead of being assigned a random doctor every time you visit a hospital.