The Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, was the third medical school of Thailand and the first regional medical school. It is located at Number 110 Intawararot, Tambon Siphum, Amphoe Mueang, Changwat Chiang Mai in the area of 276 rai (44.16 hectare/109.12 acres) where it joins the Suandok Gate in the Southeast.
The government allocated three million Baht from the revenue derived from charity stamps for education and public health for the land purchase. Contract signing of the agreement was arranged with the US Foreign Administration Organization and proposed to the Ministry of Finance for budget commitment in the following years which the cabinet granted permission to engage in the commitment on 1 May, 1957. So, the Ministry of Public Health appointed the committee to consider the land purchase on October 21, 1957 in which five categories were set up for location selection. These were convenience, communication and close to the community, all year round water supply, access to and adequate electricity supply, free from flooding and possibility for future expansion. However, the land faced a lot of problems and obstacles and took many years before the final decision opted for the piece of land near Nakhon Chiang Mai Hospital.
In June, 1958, the Medical University appointed an operational committee to draw up the plans for the establishment of the Faculty of Medicine of Nakhon Chiang Mai Hospital and agreed to hire Litchfield, Whiting, Brownes Associated to design the plans of the main building of the school and the hospital of the Faculty of Medicine and the contract signing with the company in March 1959.
The first enrollment of the premedical students of Chiang Mai began in June 1958 at the Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences of the Medical University in Bangkok, 65 students in the first year. Then on January 1, 1959, Nakhon Chiang Mai Hospital of the Ministry of Public Health was transferred to be affiliated with the Medical University and the building of the former School of Midwifery transferred from the Health Department was modified for the first group of medical students classes, but the renovation could not be complete in time for that academic year so the first year students had to study at the Associated Medical Sciences Faculty for two semesters and then transfer to Chiang Mai Province on December 31, 1960.
Meanwhile, after the first draft of the building was submitted, the Planning Committee held a meeting with the chiefs of different sections of the Faculty of Medicine and Siriraj Hospital where some slight changes were suggested and given to the company for the final improvement. After that, the construction of the building foundation was begun in 1960 by appointing Yuktasewi Kanchang Company of Thai Architects to join in and the foundation stone was laid on June 17, 1961, presided over by Field Marshall Sarit Thanarat, the Prime Minister, who was the president of the National Education Council at that time.
In October, 1963, there was a bid for the construction of the building on the finished foundation. In the first stage there would be three stories of the same length and width as the foundation (280 m. wide X 90 m. long) and it was estimated to cost around 57 million Baht. The reason for reducing it to just three stories from the original plan for 7 stories was due to a budget shortage on the Thai side while the US side could not bear the cost alone. The important problem was they had to change the whole plan of the building which was complicated and took time. Moreover, the former architect passed away and the new one had to do the complete study and survey again.
Finally, on February 23, 1965, the contract for the construction of the three-story building was signed with Phranakhon Construction Co., and the construction was launched on March 12, 1965 and it was supposed to have been completed within 720 days, after five years of the foundation construction.
After the construction continued for a certain period, Professor Dr. Boonsom Martin, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at that time, proposed to the government to grant approval for the building to be seven stories as had originally planned. Nevertheless, they face the problem of additional budget, whereas the US Foreign Administrative Organization was unable to give any more money but offered assistance in other forms such as sending architects and engineers to monitor the construction. As for the extra budget for the expansion to a seven story building, the Civil Works Department estimated for 31 million Baht more. Another problem that arose was that the foundation laid in 1960 might not be able to sustain the weight of the seven-story structure so there was a need to do a survey thoroughly all over again in 1966 and it was found that part of the foundation had deteriorated and needed repair.
In January, 1966 the government approved the expansion of seven stories and Phanakhon Construction Co. won the bid. From then on, the construction went smoothly and rather fast. All in all it took slightly over eight years from the laying of the foundation stone until the building was handed to the university on July 23, 1979. The building has been used for teaching medical students and servicing clients until the present.
References
Chiang Mai University, Faculty of Medicine. (1982).
25 pi phaetsat Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai:
Faculty of Medicine Chiang Mai University.
(in Thai).
Chiang Mai University Library
Chiang Mai
ntic@lib.cmu.ac.th
Chiang Mai University. Information Technology Service Center
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