Eye Clinic in Chiang Mai: Five Places, Hours and Phones

Satawat Eye Clinic is an ophthalmology clinic open 8 AM–8 PM every day. Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai, Rajavej, Maharaj Nakorn and Chiangmai Ram run eye units with glaucoma, retina or children's clinics. For an eye emergency at night, call 1669 or go to a hospital emergency room.

By Vincent Nguyen

Satawat Eye Clinic is an ophthalmology clinic open 8 AM–8 PM every day. Four hospitals run eye units with glaucoma, retina or children’s clinics. For an eye problem at night, use a hospital emergency room.

Quick picks

• Eye exam in the evening or on Sunday → Satawat Eye Clinic, 8 AM–8 PM every day.
• Children’s eye problems → Rajavej or Chiangmai Ram.
• Glaucoma or retina specialist → Rajavej, Maharaj Nakorn or Chiangmai Ram.
• A call centre that answers all day and night → Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai, 1719.
• Red, painful eye from contact lenses → take the lenses out and see an eye doctor today.
• Eye injury at night → call 1669 or go to an emergency room.

Compared at a glance

Satawat Eye Clinic — the evening and Sunday option

Satawat is an ophthalmology clinic. It lists a phone number and no booking page, so phone +66 62 561 0888 to ask about walk-ins before you go. Show the driver its Thai name (คลินิกตา หมอศตวรรษ ศตวรรษจักษุคลินิก หมอตาเชียงใหม่). It sits opposite Lanna golf course, near Khuang Singh junction.

Good for

• An eye exam outside office hours: open 8 AM–8 PM every day.
• Booking by phone on +66 62 561 0888.

Skip if

• You want a hospital emergency room open all night: this clinic’s hours stop at 8 PM.

Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai — the hospital with the all-hours call centre

The Ophthalmology Department has board-certified ophthalmologists who cover routine eye exams to serious vision problems. The hospital calls its methods “cutting edge technology and innovative surgical techniques”.

The eye clinic is in B Building and service hours are daily 08.00 AM – 08.00 PM. Arrive before 5:00 PM to be safe, because the hospital’s general clinic table closes the eye clinic at 5:00 pm. Phone +66 (0)52 089 880 first.

Good for

• Anything from a routine eye exam to a serious vision problem.
• Questions at any hour: the call centre is 1719, available 24 hours a day.

Skip if

• You plan to arrive after 5:00 PM: the hospital’s general clinic table stops at 5:00 pm.

Rajavej Chiang Mai Hospital — sub-clinics for glaucoma, retina and children

The eye clinic examines, diagnoses and treats eye and vision problems with ophthalmologists. Its examples of specialist clinics are glaucoma, retina and laser vision, plus a children’s clinic for short-sightedness, squint and lazy eye.

Rajavej names a tonometer for glaucoma checks and a fundus camera for photographing the inside of the eye. It lists people with diabetes or high blood pressure among those who need regular eye checks.

Good for

• A child with a squint or lazy eye.
• Glaucoma and retina checks, with the instruments named for each.

Skip if

• You need an English page: the eye clinic page is in Thai.

Phone 052-011999 ext. 240 for the eye clinic. The outpatient department is on the 1st floor and open daily 08.00 – 20.00, and these are outpatient department hours, not a stated eye-clinic schedule.

Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital — the university hospital’s eye rooms

Maharaj Nakorn is the hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, at 110 Inthawarorot Rd., Sri Phum. The general eye examination room is room 7 on the 7th floor of the Sriphat building. The retina and vitreous examination room is on the 6th floor.

Good for

• Retina problems: the hospital has a dedicated retina and vitreous room.

Skip if

• You want fixed clinic hours before you travel: no fixed hours are published, so ask the hospital.

Chiangmai Ram Hospital — glaucoma and retina doctors, clinic days by doctor

The doctor search has an ophthalmology specialty with glaucoma and retina sub-specialties. One profile lists Thai and English. Another doctor covers pediatric ophthalmology and squint.

Good for

• Squint and children’s eye problems.
• Choosing a doctor by sub-specialty before you book.

Skip if

• You want one fixed schedule: clinic days differ by doctor, for example Sunday at the eye clinic for one.

When an eye problem cannot wait

Call 1669 for a medical emergency. Chiangmai Ram has a 24-hour emergency line, 052-004601. Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai’s trauma centre is open 24 hours on +66 (0)52 089 888 and 1719. The Maharaj Nakorn emergency room is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Red, painful eye from contact lenses

Take the lenses out now and do not put them back in. Do not throw them away: keep them in their case and bring them to the eye doctor. A red eye in a lens wearer could be an infection, and a very painful red eye needs an urgent appointment. Do not try to diagnose it yourself.

Pain, unusual redness and blurred vision are all symptoms of lens-related irritation or infection. You cannot judge how serious it is yourself, so contact an eye doctor right away. In Chiang Mai that means a hospital eye unit above, or an emergency room if it is after hours.

Go to an emergency room now, or call 1669, if you have any of these:

• Changes to your sight, such as wavy lines, flashing or loss of vision.
• Pain when you look at light.
• One pupil bigger than the other.

These steps are general first aid from official health pages, not a diagnosis.

See the Chiang Mai emergency numbers and ambulance guides for what to say on the phone. For hospital choice and cover, read English-speaking hospitals in Chiang Mai, hospital costs and health insurance for expats.

↑ Contents

Not confirmed: What an eye exam costs: ask each place for an estimate when you book. Whether Satawat takes walk-ins or has English-speaking staff: phone +66 62 561 0888 before you go. For a painful eye, go to a hospital emergency room that is open.

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General information checked against the sources listed above, not legal advice for your situation. Rules and office practice change; confirm with the immigration office or a licensed adviser before you act. See how guides are checked.

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