Governor Chadcart calls an emergency meeting to find ways to deal with COVID-19 in Bangkok area

07/19/22, 4:15 pm, Bangkok Governor Mr Chadcart Sittipunt met with Associate Professor Dr Tawida Kamolvej, relevant officials and the foundation to discuss the problems and obstacles of COVID-19 patients in the Bangkok area, and the participants also the head of the Erawan Shrine centre and the representative of the “We Must Survive” page of the Saimai yarn group.

The Governor revealed that today was a good opportunity to meet a private group that looks after the people of the area, such as the Yarn Group Saimai Team “We Must Survive” page; these are the people who are reaching out to the community, listening and coordinating to resolve the question. The overarching issue is to correct misunderstandings about the number of hospital admissions in Bangkok and to assist patients with COVID-19 to receive services at Bangkok Affiliated Hospitals. All 11 service points, including 69 hospitals and health centres in the Bangkok area, may have limited space to accommodate a small number of patients, but patients can make appointments for next-day pickups to reduce the flow of people. The extra working day will be extended to Saturday to accommodate more patients.

The second issue was to inform the 608 group patients who had been tested for ATK and found themselves infected. If there is a risk of travelling to get medicine or seeing a doctor, you can give your ID card and test results to your relatives to collect medication instead. The third issue is that patients with mild symptoms sometimes only receive basic drug treatment; patients need to consult a doctor to determine whether antiviral therapy is required. Organisation representatives reiterated that there is no need to panic about not taking antiviral drugs because sometimes the virus goes away on its own like a cold.

For Group 608, the most problematic for underlying illnesses, the Bangkok city government will consider reinstating home isolation (HI) procedures, as staff should closely monitor patients for symptoms after taking their medication. The current system may not be perfect, and the Bangkok city government will speed up the revision. In addition, the BMA has opened field hospitals in Bangkok Arena in Nong Chok district and Chalerm Phrakiat Sports Centre in Thung Khru district to accommodate more than 500 green patients and added beds in Bangkok to accommodate more patients while coordinating hospitals outside Bangkok Referral care.

Another critical issue is the Erawan Center Hotline 1669, which is now being refurbished with 60 hotlines to accommodate patients requiring expedited service. All colour syndrome patients can call for help, and staff will coordinate and find beds for patients in different colour groups and arrange transportation to field hospitals or hospitals in and outside Bangkok. The staff’s work also includes promoting vaccination services and extending them to households, as data shows that booster vaccinations can help reduce symptoms in patients with red levels, thereby reducing the burden on the medical staff, which is a significant project. Currently, citizens can get vaccinated at 11 Bangkok hospitals, 69 Bangkok Health Service Centres, Wesn Sports Building and Bangkok Youth Centre Thai Ri Stadium, with daily services also available.

“Thanks to all the private organisations and departments that have joined BMA, this is very important as the Bangkok city government may not know the details and the field information obtained from many fields, which allows BMA to understand the truth of the problem and improve. BMA also assures the public that, There are enough medicines to deal with 608 groups, the elderly and those with high-risk diseases. Among them, the Bangkok city government specifically stated that citizens need to wear masks, and if COVID-19 patients have symptoms, please cooperate with the 5 + 5-day procedure, that is, self-treatment5 days, self-isolate for an additional five days to stay safe and reduce the spread of the virus to others,” Governor Chadcart said.

Bangkok Hospital has about 760 beds, with a bed occupancy rate of 47%. There are 24 red-level patients and 17 beds, and 700 yellow-level patients and 366 beds. While the Bangkok area has 5,600 hospital beds, more than 3,000, or 47%, are occupied, and there are still enough beds to accommodate new COVID-19 patients.