Public hospital, Pak Phraek, south-east Kanchanaburi.
Phaholpolpayuhasena Hospital
Kanchanaburi’s provincial hospital — the Ministry of Public Health’s big public hospital, with about 600 beds in use, at the Bangkok end of Saengchuto Road.
Ambulance and medical emergency: 1669. Tourist Police: 1155. Police: 191.
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โรงพยาบาลพหลพลพยุหเสนา
Say “rong phayaban Phahon”. At the Bangkok end of Saengchuto Road beside the Provincial Hall, about five minutes from the railway station and thirteen from the Bridge.
- TypePublic — Ministry of Public Health provincial hospital for Kanchanaburi
- BedsAbout 485
- Address572 Saengchuto Road, Pak Phraek, Mueang Kanchanaburi, Kanchanaburi 71000
- Switchboard+66 34 587 800
- Websitephahol.moph.go.th
- LanguagesThai; some English, mostly in the emergency room
- On the mapOpen in Google Maps
The big public hospital for the whole province. Licensed for 485 beds and running about 600, it has every major department and takes the serious road-accident cases, the transfers from the district hospitals and everything the private hospitals cannot handle, at Thai public-hospital prices. The trade-off is queues, crowded wards and paperwork mostly in Thai.
What it is known for
Size and reach. Phaholpolpayuhasena is the Ministry of Public Health’s provincial hospital for Kanchanaburi, graded at the ministry’s top level for a general hospital, licensed for 485 beds and in practice running about 600. Every major department is here — medicine, surgery, orthopaedics, obstetrics, paediatrics, intensive care — and it is the hospital the province’s small district hospitals refer to, so a bad accident at Erawan or out on the Sai Yok road ends up here unless the patient is taken private. Named after a prime minister of the 1930s, it is known to everyone in town simply as Phahon.
Who it suits
Travellers without insurance who need real care at a price they can pay, anyone whose case is beyond the two private hospitals, and anyone in an emergency for whom the 1669 crew decides. It is not the place for a quick English-language consultation: outpatient queues are long, the wards are crowded, forms are in Thai and English is limited to the emergency room and some of the doctors. Bring a Thai-speaking friend or ask your guesthouse for one; for a minor complaint with insurance, Synphaet or Thanakarn will be faster and easier.
Cost and insurance
Public-hospital prices. Foreigners are charged a higher tariff than Thai citizens but still a fraction of what either private hospital in town bills for the same treatment, and a small fraction of Bangkok. Payment is in cash or by card at the cashier before you leave; insurers almost never direct-bill a public hospital, so expect to pay and claim. Bring your passport, and ask for an itemised receipt and a medical certificate in English before you go — both are routine requests, but you must ask, because the paperwork otherwise comes in Thai.
Getting there
At the south-eastern end of Saengchuto Road, the main road through town, beside the Provincial Hall on the Bangkok side of the centre: about five minutes by car from the railway station, eight from the Mae Nam Kwai Road guesthouses and thirteen from the Bridge. Songthaews running along Saengchuto Road pass the gate; a tuk-tuk or your guesthouse’s driver is easier with an injury. Say “rong phayaban Phahon” — every driver knows it. In an emergency call 1669 rather than driving; this is the hospital its ambulances bring the serious cases to.
Details checked against the hospital’s own website, September 2026. Call before a non-urgent visit; in an emergency call 1669 or the hospital’s own emergency line above. Travel information, not medical advice.
The other 4 hospitals in Kanchanaburi
- Synphaet Hospital KanchanaburiPrivate, about 100 beds, Saengchuto Road (Route 323), north-west of the Bridge.
- Thong Pha Phum HospitalPublic, about 90 beds, Thong Pha Phum town, by the market.
- Thanakarn HospitalPrivate, about 74 beds, Saengchuto Road, between the centre and the Provincial Hall.
- Sangkhlaburi HospitalPublic, Sangkhlaburi town, under a kilometre from the Mon Bridge.