Rebuilding Hope: Renovating Sop Moei Hospital

About Sob Moei Hospital

Sob Moei Hospital, located in Mae Hong Son Province, was established in 1989 to serve residents and patients living in remote and hard-to-reach areas.
Currently, the hospital operates as a community hospital responsible for providing healthcare to 47,784 people. It also serves as the main referral hospital in the southern zone of Mae Hong Son Province, caring for patients from Sob Moei District, nearby border areas with Tak and Chiang Mai Provinces, and even communities along the Thai–Myanmar border.

Over the past three fiscal years (2021–2023), the hospital has served between 55,000 to 100,000 outpatients annually, and approximately 2,000 inpatients per year.
The hospital consists of three main buildings:

1. Outpatient Building – housing emergency services, dental clinic, delivery room, X-ray unit, laboratory, and pharmacy.

2. Central Building – providing 22 specialized clinics including maternal and child care, dialysis, mental health, chronic disease management, rehabilitation, and Thai traditional medicine.

3. Inpatient Building – accommodating patients requiring hospital admission.

However, the Central Building, which contains the majority of clinics, now faces severe overcrowding, serving over 15,000 patient visits per year. Due to space limitations, some clinics have had to operate under makeshift tents in parking areas to reduce congestion — posing challenges for infection control and overall quality of care.
Moreover, the lack of adequate workspace for healthcare personnel, who serve hundreds of patients daily, impacts both staff efficiency and patient safety.

To address these issues, Sob Moei Hospital has been selected to participate in the Community Hospital Co-Design Program, supported by the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth). This initiative promotes creative redesign of hospital spaces through collaboration between medical staff and architects.
However, additional funding is still urgently needed to complete facility renovations, ensure sufficient patient service areas, and enhance care capacity in this mountainous and underserved district.

Your contribution will help Sob Moei Hospital create a safe, accessible, and high-quality primary healthcare environment, empowering both patients and healthcare workers — and bringing hope to thousands of lives in remote northern Thailand.