BANGKOK – Dr Sophon Iamsirithaworn, Director of the Department of General Communicable Disease, as head of the Emergency Operation Center, has disclosed that a Chinese tourist from Wuhan who was found to be infected with the new strain of coronavirus when she arrived in Thailand on January 8, 2020, has now returned to China.
She was screened at the airport on arrival and was found to have a high fever. She was then admitted to the Bamrasnaradura Institute. However, she has now fully recovered, and results of tests by two laboratories were negative. She was allowed to return to China on January 18, 2020.
Dr Sophon said today that the World Health Organization has not yet announced a ban on travel to countries where this strain of virus is reported. As the Chinese New Year festival is approaching and there will be more visitors to Thailand, the Ministry of Public Health has determined guidelines for preventing its outbreak here and increased surveillance in communities and at tourist attractions nationwide.
Dr Aphichat Wachiraphan, Director of the Bamrasnaradura Institute, has assured the public that the Bamrasnaradura Institute’s standards of operation meet international standards. People who need to travel to risk areas are asked to be careful, avoid being in crowded places and stay away from people with respiratory symptoms.
When they return from the risk area, should the travelers have suspicious symptoms, they must see a doctor immediately and reveal their travel records. If patients with symptoms of pneumonia are found, please call the DDC’s hotline 1422 to have an ambulance from a hospital pick them up immediately.
