Thailand News - Corona - By Ola J. - Palmtree

Thailand is facing the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic sooner than anticipated, with the curve of infections on a steep rise and body temperature scanners installed in most offices and public venues not catching asymptomatic cases, said Dr. Somsak Akksilp, director-general of Medical Services today (Wednesday).

Dr. Somsak was quoting a forecast by Dr. Sunt Srianthumrong, a special lecturer at the Graduate School of Environmental Development Administration of the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA).

He admitted that it is difficult to differentiate between an infection by the Omicron variant and flu, based on the symptoms, noting that, of about half of the Omicron cases are asymptomatic.

There are seven Omicron cases in which the virus has entered the lungs, but ventilators are not currently needed to help in breathing. 54% of the cases develop a cough, 37% a sore throat, 15% muscle pains, 12% a runny nose, 10% a headache, 5% develop breathing difficulties and 2% lost their sense of smell.

Due to the difficulty in distinguishing between Omicron and flu, Dr. Somsak recommended that anyone who suffers flu-like symptoms isolate and take an antigen test.

If the test result is positive, he said that the person must contact the National Health Security Office, via the 1330 hotline. Officials will respond to the call to assess the initial symptoms within six hours.  If the symptoms are not serious, the infected person will enter home or community isolation. Severe cases will be admitted to a hospital immediately.

In a worst case scenario, in which there are about 30,000 infections, he said there are roughly 52,000 beds available across the country, which are more than enough.

The Thai government will need at least four weeks to assess the latest COVID-19 situation, following the long New Year holidays, after which new infections are expected to surge.

It will then decide whether to adjust existing safety and preventive measures, said Government Spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, today (Wednesday).

He explained that it will take two weeks to assess the new infections and another fortnight to assess the numbers of hospitalisations and fatalities before a decision can be made by the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), which is chaired by the prime minister and is due to meet this Friday.

This means that the temporary suspension in accepting new Thailand Pass applications in place since December 22, 2021 may remain until at least the end of January. Those who have applied and been granted the Thailand Pass can still enter the country under the Test and Go programme until January 10, 2022, as per the previous announcement. This also means the reopening of pubs and bars scheduled for January 16 is now unlikely.

Meanwhile, Thanakorn said the prime minister is pleading with the unvaccinated and partially vaccinated to get fully inoculated or boosted, particularly the elderly, pregnant women and those suffering from underlying diseases, because doing so will help reduce the risk of hospitalisation and death.

Those at high-risk of being infected should be socially responsible, by refraining from travel and  isolating, so they do not to pose a risk to others and for their own safety, said Thanakorn.