Thailand (Air Force), Kingdom of

Basic Task of the Military Medical Service
• Planning, staffing, organizing and evaluating RTAF medical operation.
• Research and development in RTAF medical science.
• Medical services in military medicine, general medicine, preventive medicine and prevention of NBC warfare.
• Medical personnel training.
• Medical logistic.
• Knowledge management in RTAF medicine.

Structure
Directorate of Medical Service is directly under command of RTAF Chief Commander.
10 Wing Hospitals with 30–50 beds (directly under RTAF command).
3 Independent squadron medical units.
9 Air defence medical support units.
8 Telecommunication relay centre medical units.
1 Special support centre medical unit.

Headquarters of RTAF Medical Service

Royal Thai Air Force Hospital Klumket

Military Hospitals (examples)
10 Hospitals

1. Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital, Bangkok
• 705 beds with 800 beds full capacity.
• Departments: OPD, medicine, surgery, orthopaedic, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, pathology, ophthalmology, ear-nose-throat, radiology, dental nursing, pharmacy, anesthesiology, blood bank, rehabilitation, medical education, cardiac centre, respiratory unit, nutritional unit and infectious control unit.

2. Chantarubakesa Hospital, Nakhon Pathom
• 350 beds with 500 beds full capacity.
• Departments: medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, OPD, aviation medicine, preventive medicine, anesthesiology, radiology, pathology, eye ear-nose-throat, paediatrics, pharmacy, dentistry, orthopaedics, rehabilitation and nursing.

Institutes

Institute of Aviation Medicine
Task:
• Planning, staffing, organizing and evaluating RTAF aviation medicine.
• Research and development of aviation medicine.
• Licensing of pilots.
• Medical services for pilot and flight personnel.
• Logistic on aviation medicine.
• Medical air evacuation.
Location: 171 Paholyothin Road, Klongthanon, Saimai, Bangkok 10220.
Departments: Technical Division, Pilot Health Control, Flight Safety, Aviation Pathology, Air Evacuation Center OPD service only.

Preventive Medicine Division, Bangkok
• OPD service only.
• Departments: health sanitary, clinical pathology, public health, infectious control, health promotion and veterinary.

Number of Medical Service Personnel

Training
• Training for medical services officers in Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital.
• Residency training in 17 subspecialties including general surgery, otolaryngology, orthopaedics, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynaecology, pediatric, aviation medicine, neurosurgery, family medicine, emergency medicine, critical care medicine, nephrology, cardiology, gastroenterology, gynecologic oncology,  neonatology and perinatology, traumatic surgery.
• Training for assisting/nursing in RTAF nursing college.

Field Deployments
• 20 Fields Units (directly under RTAF deployed unit).
• Wing hospital or RTAF medical unit is responsible for the area around RTAF air bases.
• Medical air evacuation centre, institute of aviation medicine is responsible for air evacuation upon request from air command control centre, RTAF.
• Equipment.
• Protected Transport Vehicle of the medical services for ground transportation.
• C-130 for an evacuation aircraft.
• Experience of active deployment with medical service of other nation.
• East Timor in 2004.
• Iraq in 2005.

Civil-Military Cooperation
• Integration of the military medical services in the civilian healthcare system.
• Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital affiliation with Chulalongkorn University for medical student graduate training.
• Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital under the medical council of Thailand for postgraduate medical residency training.
• Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital and Chantarubeksa Hospital involve in the civilian health care system and social security system.
• RTAF hospitals involved in the universal coverage project.
• Institute of aviation medicine trained several aviation medicine course for civilian airline personnel.