The hospital, to be built on 17 rai at the PSU Phuket campus in Kathu, is expected to be operational within three years with 150 beds capacity and serve approximately 600 outpatients a day.
The PSU Phuket Hospital is just one part of the health center to be built at the site, which is also to include the Andaman International College of Health and a Wellness Center.
Assoc Prof Pun Thongchumnum PhD, PSU Phuket Campus Vice President, explained at a recent meeting of the PSU Phuket Campus Promotion Committee that the Andaman International College of Health will provide short-term and long-term courses for students.
The college will begin accepting nursing students in academic year 2020 and both dentistry and medical technology students in academic year 2022, he said.
The college is to produce medical personnel, including doctors, nurses, dentists, medical technicians and even traditional Thai medicine practitioners.
Last year alone saw some 5,820 patients at hospitals located in Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi transferred to receive medical treatment at the Songklanagarind Hospital at the PSU Hat Yai main campus, Prof Pun explained.
From there, some patients had to be referred to see specialists in Bangkok, he added, pointing out the number of patients in the area who needed to seek treatment elsewhere.
“To solve the problems and lighten the cost for patients having to travel [to other hospitals], PSU will establish the Andaman International Health Center,” he said.
The health centre project and its hospital have been some time coming, Prof Pun noted. The project was added to the university’s strategic plan for the years 2018-2022, and approved by the University Council on Jan 12 last year.
Construction of the PSU Phuket Hospital, which is currently also being called the Songklanagarind Hospital Phuket Campus, in deference to the main Songklanagarind Hospital at the PSU main campus in Hat Yai, is to be rolled out in three phases, explained Assoc Prof Dr Phuttisak Phuttiwiboon, head of the university committee overseeing the project.
Phase one is the hospital’s medical clinic, open to PSU staff and local people, which is expected to open in October.
The second phase will see the completion of the main hospital with 100-150 beds, Prof Phuttisak said.
The third phase of the hospital’s construction will see the number of inpatient beds at the facility expanded to 300, he added.