BANGKOK – The Ministry of Public Health on Thursday (March 5) announced that Thailand has reported four more confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), taking the country’s total to 47.
The first of the four confirmed cases is an Italian national who went to a private hospital after developing a fever. The patient was later transferred to Chonburi Hospital. The second of the four cases is a Thai national who returned from Italy. The second patient went to a private hospital in Chonburi province. The first two cases are not related. Neither case showed any symptoms during the screening of airport passengers.
The third confirmed case is a Chinese student who returned from Iran and was waiting to take a flight at Suvarnabhumi Airport. The student developed a fever, a cough and a runny nose, and was taken to the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute.
The fourth case is a Thai national who also returned from Iran. The patient went to a hospital in Nakhon Si Thammarat province, and is undergoing treatment.
Thailand now has an accumulated total of 47 confirmed cases, 31 of whom have recovered, while 15 others are being treated in hospitals. A critically ill patient is being treated at the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute. The virus is no longer detectable, but the patient remains under close supervision.
Prime Minister and Defense Minister, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, has instructed the Ministry of Public Health and other relevant ministries and units to screen people at airports and prepare places to accommodate passengers who appear to have a risk of infection, as they have to be supervised by the government.
The Ministry of Public Health has provided criteria to help different agencies set up a proper quarantine facility. The facility must be safe. It must have a kitchen, a ward, a proper waste management system, other facilities and officers working in shifts around the clock.
People who recently returned from at-risk locations are required to observe a 14-day period of self-quarantine at home to prevent the potential spread of the virus.
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