Thomson Pediatric Centre is one of Singapore's better-known private children's clinics, run by Thomson Medical across six locations from Novena to Punggol. A daytime urgent-care visit there starts at about S$75 (as of June 2026), and a first specialist consultation at a comparable private children's centre runs north of S$200 before any tests or medicine. That is six to ten times what you would pay at a polyclinic for a citizen child. This guide breaks down the actual fees, the branches and doctors, the after-hours charges most parents miss, and the vaccinations and screenings the government now fully subsidises so you never overpay for them.
Thomson Pediatric Centre is the children's-clinic arm of Thomson Medical, a private Singapore healthcare group best known for its Novena maternity hospital. It is a private specialist setting, not a subsidised public clinic, so you pay the full fee-for-service rate and there is no government subsidy on the consultation itself.
The centre handles general paediatrics, neonatology, paediatric cardiology, growth and development checks, nutrition, respiratory care and 24-hour urgent care for newborns through to teenagers. Care is delivered by a panel of paediatricians, each tied to a specific branch, so the doctor you see depends on which location you book.
Thomson does not publish a single flat consultation price for routine appointments - specialist fees vary by doctor and by what is done during the visit. The one set of rates it does publish openly is for its 24-hour paediatric urgent care, and those figures are the clearest anchor for what a visit costs.
The urgent-care consultation fee alone (before medicine, X-rays, tests or procedures) is tiered by the time and day you walk in. All figures below are inclusive of 9% GST and are quoted by Thomson Medical as of June 2026.
| Time slot | Weekday (Mon-Fri) | Weekend (Sat-Sun) | Public holiday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day (8am-6pm) | From S$75.32 | From S$69.76 | From S$113.03 |
| Evening (6pm-midnight) | S$87.10-S$100.06 | Up to S$95.92 | Up to S$132.98 |
| Midnight onwards | S$122.08-S$131.89 | S$122.08-S$131.89 | Up to S$132.98 |
Thomson's fees sit in the normal band for private paediatrics in Singapore. To see what a full specialist appointment costs, it helps to look at a centre that publishes its rates in full. Raffles Children's Centre lists a first paediatric consultation at S$221.27 and a subsequent consultation at S$159.47 (incl. GST, as of June 2026), with a separate practice cost of S$19.62.
That is the realistic ceiling for a first private visit before any vaccinations, swabs or scans. Across private centres you should budget S$80-S$130 for a straightforward sick visit and S$160-S$250 for a first specialist consultation. Build that into your monthly cash-flow plan using a tool like the personal budget calculator so an unexpected fever week does not blow your spending.
| Setting | Typical consultation cost | Subsidy for citizen child |
|---|---|---|
| Polyclinic (SingHealth) | S$7.60 | Yes - heavily subsidised |
| Polyclinic (NUP / NHG) | S$8.10 | Yes - heavily subsidised |
| Private GP (general) | S$20-S$40+ | No (CHAS may apply) |
| Thomson urgent care (day) | From S$75.32 | No |
| Private paediatric specialist | S$160-S$250 first visit | No |
For routine coughs, colds and standard vaccinations, a polyclinic is the cheapest option by a wide margin. A Singapore Citizen child pays S$7.60 at a SingHealth polyclinic or S$8.10 at a National University or National Healthcare Group polyclinic (as of June 2026). A Permanent Resident child pays more - around S$32.20 to S$36 - but still far below private rates.
The trade-off is waiting time and you may not see the same doctor twice. For a worried-parent first appointment about development or a complex condition, the continuity of a named paediatrician can be worth the premium. For a textbook fever, it rarely is. If your household is weighing private cover against paying out of pocket, the same logic applies to insurance - it is the same reasoning behind choosing an Integrated Shield Plan rider tier.
Many parents pay private rates for vaccinations that are fully subsidised. Under the National Childhood Immunisation Schedule (NCIS), Singapore covers vaccines against 14 diseases, including the 6-in-1 (DTaP-IPV-Hib-HepB), pneumococcal (PCV13), MMR, MMRV, varicella, HPV and influenza.
From 1 September 2025, the patient fee for nationally recommended childhood vaccinations and developmental screenings is capped at S$0 at CHAS GP clinics for eligible Singapore Citizen children, and is fully subsidised at polyclinics for eligible citizens and PRs (PRs only at polyclinics). Seven developmental screenings for ages 0-6 are also fully subsidised. If a private clinic quotes you a vaccination fee, ask whether the same shot is on the Subsidised Vaccine List elsewhere first.
The biggest avoidable costs at a private centre are after-hours surcharges and procedures you did not need to do there. A midnight urgent-care visit can cost nearly twice a daytime one, so unless it is genuinely urgent, a daytime polyclinic or GP slot is cheaper and just as safe for routine illness.
Treat a private paediatrician as the right tool for the right job: developmental concerns, chronic conditions, or when you want one consistent doctor who knows your child's history. For everything else, the subsidised system is built for you. If you are saving toward a baby fund or first-year costs, set a target with the savings goal calculator and earmark a buffer for the unsubsidised visits you cannot plan around.
Thomson Pediatric Centre does not publish a flat routine consultation price, but its 24-hour paediatric urgent-care fee starts from about S$75.32 in the daytime on weekdays (incl. 9% GST, as of June 2026), rising to S$122-S$132 after midnight. That fee covers the consultation only - medication, X-rays, tests and procedures are billed separately.
As of June 2026 the centre operates across six locations: two clinics at Thomson Medical Centre in Novena, plus Thomson Specialists Woodleigh, Jem in Jurong, Parkway Parade, and Waterway Point in Punggol. Each paediatrician is based at a specific branch, so the doctor you see depends on the location you book.
Yes, significantly. A Singapore Citizen child pays S$7.60 to S$8.10 at a polyclinic versus from S$75 at Thomson urgent care or S$160 to S$250 for a first private specialist visit (June 2026). Polyclinics suit routine illness and standard vaccinations; a private paediatrician is worth the premium for developmental concerns or continuity of care.
For eligible Singapore Citizen children, nationally recommended vaccinations under the National Childhood Immunisation Schedule are fully subsidised with a S$0 patient fee at CHAS GP clinics from 1 September 2025, and fully subsidised at polyclinics for citizens and PRs. Seven developmental screenings for ages 0 to 6 are also fully subsidised.
This is general financial information for Singapore, not personal financial advice. Figures change — verify current rates against the official sources above before acting. See our full disclaimer.