Bajrakitiyabha Building

Pramongkutklao Hospital is the biggest and well equipped army general hospital with about 1800 beds capacity. It is a referral hospital for tertiary care not only for the army personnels and their families from the satellite army hospitals all over the country but also for the civilians as well. Its medical, paramedical and other personnels numbered over 3800 individuals.

The hospital has become one of the leading teaching medical centers that includes complete medical subspecialty services, residency and fellowship training progams. It's also an associate undergraduate student training base hospital for both Pramongkutklao College of Medicine and the Army Nursing School.

Pramongkutklao Hospital has been at public service for over 40 years now. The number of patients has been on the rise and the facilities to accommodate them have become overly crowded. The pressing needs are thus many and the problems have been addressed step by step.

At the earlier stage, our Pediatric Service was just a small unit and the patient's wards scattered here and there at various adult-ward buidings. Such situation had brought about great inconveniences in terms of patient's care and teaching.

It was not until May 21, 1991, that was about 6 years previously when Her Royal Highness Princess Somsawalee and her daughter Princess Bajrakitiyabha - H.M. King Bhumipol's grand-daughter and the Royal Patron of "Pramongkutklao Hospital's Children Foundation", had graciously granted an audience to the administrative committee of the foundation.

Out of her concern, Princess Somsawalee had expressed her thought that Pramongkutklao Hospital should have its own pediatric service building in order to adequately cope with the ever increasing numbers of sick kids from all walks of life. To fulfil her thought, she had kindly donated an initial fund to suppport the construction cost of the building and to generate further public donations. The Princess had also granted permission to name the building after her daughter's name.

In order to commenorate the Young Princess Bajrakitiyabha of her numerous activities in the public benefits and charity and for her being an affectionate model of well behaved Thai youth, The Royal Thai Army was in accordance with the request for the construction of a double-wing, eleven floor buiding to serve two purposes, they are:

The South-wing will be used to house a 200 bed Pediatric service plus 60 cribs for the newborns. The adjoin North-wing will be allocated for a 200 bed Obstetrical and Gynecological service. This will be the only building of its kind in Thailand where mother and child care are placed under one roofed building.

The auspicious foundation-stone laying ceremony took place on July 9, 1993, at 15.15 hours. The occasion was presided over by Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha. The construction took 3 years to complete. It will be officially open some time in 1998.

Our long and overdue dream has now become reality-