Public hospital, Jalan Residensi, George Town.
Hospital Pulau Pinang
The state hospital and northern Malaysia’s referral centre — around 1,090 beds on Jalan Residensi, with the emergency and trauma department the island relies on.
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Hospital Pulau Pinang
Say “Hospital Pulau Pinang”, or the GH — every driver knows it. On Jalan Residensi, about two kilometres west of KOMTAR.
Still widely called Penang General Hospital, or simply the GH.
- TypePublic — Ministry of Health; the state hospital and the tertiary referral centre for northern Malaysia
- BedsAbout 1,090
- FormerlyPenang General Hospital
- AddressJalan Residensi, 10990 George Town, Penang
- Switchboard+60 4 222 5333
- Ambulance and emergency, nationwide (not the hospital)999
- LanguagesMalay and English; English is used routinely in clinical work
- Opened1854
- On the mapOpen in Google Maps
The state hospital and the tertiary referral centre for northern Malaysia: around 1,090 beds on a campus off Jalan Residensi in George Town, on a site whose hospital history runs back to the 1850s. Everything is here, from emergency and trauma through neurosurgery and cardiothoracic surgery to oncology and radiotherapy, at government prices, and it is where a 999 ambulance takes a serious case. The trade-off is the queue, and there is no international patient office to smooth the paperwork.
What it is known for
Scale, and the fact that the difficult cases end here. Hospital Pulau Pinang is the state hospital and the tertiary referral centre for northern Malaysia, with around 1,090 beds on a campus off Jalan Residensi in George Town. Its emergency and trauma department is where an ambulance takes a serious road accident on the island, and behind it sit neurosurgery, cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery, oncology and radiotherapy, orthopaedics, plastic and reconstructive surgery, nuclear medicine and every other specialty the private hospitals refer on to. Foreign patients are treated, and are charged the published government tariff for non-citizens.
Who it suits
Anyone without insurance who needs real hospital care, and anyone whose injury is serious enough that the specialist matters more than the room. The trade-off is the queue: outpatient clinics are busy, admission is to a shared ward, and nothing here is arranged around a visitor’s timetable. Language is rarely the obstacle, since English is used routinely in clinical work, but there is no international patient office to handle the paperwork and no direct billing of a foreign insurer. With insurance and a problem that can wait, one of the four private hospitals will be faster and more comfortable.
Cost and insurance
The cheapest care on the island by a wide margin. Malaysia charges non-citizens a separate published tariff at government hospitals, and even so a consultation with tests and medicine costs a fraction of the private equivalent. Payment is at the cashier before you leave. Do not expect a government hospital to bill a foreign insurer directly — this is pay-and-claim — so ask for an itemised receipt, a medical report and the discharge summary before you go. Records are kept in English, which makes the claim easier to file than from most countries in the region.
Getting there
On Jalan Residensi in George Town, about two kilometres west of KOMTAR and roughly ten minutes by car from the heritage zone when the roads are clear. There is no rail on the island, so a Grab or a taxi is the way; tell the driver Hospital Pulau Pinang, or the GH, which is what most people still call it. The campus is large, so ask at the entrance for the emergency and trauma department — Jabatan Kecemasan dan Trauma — rather than guessing at a gate. In an emergency call 999 rather than making your own way.
Details checked against the hospital’s own website, September 2026. Call before a non-urgent visit; in an emergency call 999 or the hospital’s own emergency line above. Travel information, not medical advice.
The other 4 hospitals in Penang
- Island HospitalPrivate, about 600 beds, Macalister Road, central George Town.
- Gleneagles Hospital PenangPrivate, about 300 beds, Pulau Tikus, near Gurney Drive.
- Penang Adventist HospitalPrivate, about 251 beds, Jalan Burma, Pulau Tikus.
- Pantai Hospital PenangPrivate, about 209 beds, Bayan Baru, near the airport.