COVID-19: Most foreigners in Thailand are not wearing facemasks, those that are more worried about pollution

[webfact]

COVID-19: Most foreigners in Thailand are not wearing facemasks, those that are more worried about pollution

 

File photo

 

Contrary to official advice, most foreigners in Thailand are not wearing facemasks in order to help prevent becoming infected with COVID-19.

 

According to a straw poll of 3,000 foreigners carried out by Thaivisa, the overwhelming majority said they had not been wearing a facemask while in Thailand during the coronavirus outbreak.

 

The poll, posted on the Thaivisa Facebook page earlier this week, asked: Have you been wearing a face mask in Thailand? 

 

28 percent of respondents said ‘Yes’, while 72 percent said ‘No’ - they hadn’t been wearing a mask.

 

Numerous people commenting who had been wearing a facemask said they did so due to the pollution and air quality in Thailand, not because of COVID-19.

 

“YES. But because of the filthy air, not the virus”, Facebook user Tim Ward commented. 

 

“I almost always wear one in Bangkok anyway because of the air pollution, virus or no virus”, wrote Alan John.

 

“I wear a face-mask as much for the polluted air, as corona!”, said Tony Lash.

 

“I wear a mask on planes and buses or places that are crowded which isn’t many at the moment. I think good hand hygiene is the key to staying safe”, Lee Henbery said. 

 

“I wear a mask because living in Chiang Mai air quality is really bad here right now”, add Peter Parker

 

One Facebook user said wearing a facemask in public can help to give others peace of mind.

 

“Not all the time [wearing a facemask], but in public areas with many people about, it makes them feel safe and happier to serve you”, Noel Cross wrote.

 

There has been a lot of conflicting advice both in Thailand and elsewhere not only regarding the effectiveness of wearing a facemask in order to reduce risk of infection from COVID-19 but also when to wear a facemask.

 

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is only necessary to wear a facemask if you are looking after someone infected with COVID-19 or if you yourself are sick. 

 

WHO says that ensuring your hands are kept clean either with soap and water or by using an alcohol based hand gel should be the priority. 

 

In Thailand, the situation regarding wearing a facemask is equally confusing with advice seeming to differ depending on which government department’s website you happen to be reading. 

 

While officials have been busy handing out free facemasks nationwide, information posted on the Ministry of Public Health website on 5 March states that only those who show symptoms for COVID-19 should wear a mask. The MOPH also says that people should “wear masks while coughing, sneezing”.

 

However, recommendations posted on the Tourism Authority website on 3 March asks foreigners in Thailand to “kindly wear a hygienic mask during travel”.

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2020-03-06

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[SpanishExpat]

Because most of us are "chalad"! We read foreign news and those green OP-masks make 0 sense. They are even risky, if you wear them multiple times, as they are not produced for that.

 

I have a few FFP2 mask because of the air pollution and wear them in the BTS/MRT. But thats it.

Edited March 6, 2020 by SpanishExpat

[unamazedloso]

Yep im another but didnt comment as such in the poll but i wear a mask everyday on my farm because the neighbours burn rubbish and make charcoal 24/7. Little chance of corona getting out here in the midle of nowhere. My family are all hermits..

[YetAnother]

Thais will never get the idea that masks are useless against this virus

[DrTuner]

Thaivisa facebook page poll. People who use facebook have already lost the plot.

[Chazar]

19 minutes ago, webfact said:

Peter Parker

oh  really...and Tim Ward  as  well....isnt he "sharky" so Sharky and Spiderman

[johng]

20 minutes ago, webfact said:

“I wear a mask because living in Chiang Mai air quality is really bad here right now”, add Peter Parker

He wears one because  really he is "Spiderman" ????

[keith101]

Does the type of face mask make a difference?

The CDC doesn’t currently recommend that the general public wear face masks to prevent viral infections. However, the organization says that people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 (or are being evaluated for infection) should wear a mask when they’re in the same room as other people.

[smedly]

42 minutes ago, webfact said:

According to a straw poll of 3,000 foreigners carried out by Thaivisa, the overwhelming majority said they had not been wearing a facemask while in Thailand during the coronavirus outbreak.

First - the cheap face masks offer little to zero protection against convid 19 infection

 

Second - since there have been less than 50 cases in Thailand and only 13 remaining that being treated - where is the threat, according the Health Minister the are no other cases and there has been little to no information to say otherwise

[timendres]

41 minutes ago, webfact said:

Contrary to official advice, most foreigners in Thailand are not wearing facemasks in order to help prevent becoming infected with COVID-19.

Advice from Thai officials is meaningless. Intelligent, knowledgeable officials will point out that wearing a mask provides virtually no protection from becoming infected.

[bkk6060]

Seems many people here are not wearing them, not just foreigners.

Sorry, but I trust what the CDC and WHO are saying about this.

[ozz1]

Meanwhile  a man has been diagnosed with corona virus in Australia after being in Thailand I don't know if he was wearing a mask or not

[Dmaxdan]

Currently I don't wear a face mask, but I have become very obsessive with hand washing. 

[soalbundy]

where I am not even the Thais wear them

[sattahip]

15 minutes ago, smedly said:

First - the cheap face masks offer little to zero protection against convid 19 infection

 

Second - since there have been less than 50 cases in Thailand and only 13 remaining that being treated - where is the threat, according the Health Minister the are no other cases and there has been little to no information to say otherwise

I am of the view that Thailand has no idea of the numbers of infected, dead and recovered. 

[Lacessit]

7 minutes ago, Dmaxdan said:

Currently I don't wear a face mask, but I have become very obsessive with hand washing. 

Hand washing only works if you don't touch a contaminated surface afterwards. A step further is using the thin latex gloves surgeons wear.

I go out with said gloves, and discard them when I get back to my condo.

Masks are more useful in preventing infected people from transferring the virus to others.

[smedly]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

According to a straw poll of 3,000 foreigners carried out by Thaivisa, the overwhelming majority said they had not been wearing a facemask while in Thailand during the coronavirus outbreak.

First - the cheap face masks offer little to zero protection against convid 19 infection

 

Second - since there have been less than 50 cases in Thailand and only 13 remaining that being treated - where is the threat, according the Health Minister the are no other cases and there has been little to no information to say otherwise

 

This is why it is so important to keep people truthfully informed about what is going on and where

Edited March 6, 2020 by smedly

[Thunder26]

Didn't WHO say that it is not necessary to wear a mask unless you are sick or have contact with sick people like nurses and doctors. this craze with masks doesn't make any sense. Wearing them for pollution is another story.

[CGW]

52 minutes ago, YetAnother said:

Thais will never get the idea that masks are useless against this virus

Nobody will when there are misleading articles like this!

Beware - the face mask Police 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

24 minutes ago, timendres said:

Advice from Thai officials is meaningless. Intelligent, knowledgeable officials will point out that wearing a mask provides virtually no protection from becoming infected.

 

Rubbish... There's a reason every medical personnel dealing with actual or suspected CV  is going to be wearing an N95 mask and various other PPE, because they ARE effective.... IF the person wearing the mask handles it properly and in accord with hygiene protocols.

 

The medical establishment seems to believe that hospital staff can be taught how to properly wear and handle the masks, but somehow the public is too ignorant to learn and follow those same techniques.

 

But more to the point, there's a tremendous worldwide supply shortage right now for N95 and other masks precisely because so many are needed for medical workers.  So if the medical establishment started recommending the public wear them as well, that would only exacerbate the already severe shortages of masks that hospitals and others are experiencing.

 

The WHO and the U.S. government are going to be buying many hundreds of millions of N95 masks now and in the weeks/months ahead to provide to medical workers, precisely because they DO work if handled properly. Thus in this case, I'm paying more attention to what they are doing vs what they are saying in regards to the general public.

 

Edited March 6, 2020 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Rimmer]

This virus is not airborne,  PM2.5 polution is airborne

[thaibeachlovers]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

One Facebook user said wearing a facemask in public can help to give others peace of mind.

Sadly, most of the people that would be disturbed do not understand that the paper masks are a waste of time. They probably don't even stop pollution either.

The only reason to wear them far as I'm concerned is if I have a cold and don't want to sneeze or cough over other people.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

3 minutes ago, Rimmer said:

This virus is not airborne,  PM2.5 polution is airborne

 

Depending on what you mean by "airborne," of course CV can be airborne, from the tiny droplets that circulate in the air when someone infected with the virus sneezes, coughs etc.

[smedly]

11 minutes ago, sattahip said:

I am of the view that Thailand has no idea of the numbers of infected, dead and recovered. 

or they don't want to know, what they don't know they don't have to tell

 

Pity Thai people in general do what they are told when it comes to social media especially when threatened with arrest and jail

[rkidlad]

I just read a story about a doctor at Chula asking people not to wear the masks if they feel fine and leave them for medical professionals, etc. 

 

I don’t wear a mask: they’re hard to find and I also wanna leave them for people who need them. I keep clean. I try not to touch things and I wash my hands often. We should be preaching personal hygiene. 

Edited March 6, 2020 by rkidlad

[smedly]

9 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

Rubbish... There's a reason every medical personnel dealing with actual or suspected CV  is going to be wearing an N95 mask and various other PPE, because they ARE effective.... IF the person wearing the mask handles it properly and in accord with hygiene protocols.

 

The medical establishment seems to believe that hospital staff can be taught how to properly wear and handle the masks, but somehow the public is too ignorant to learn and follow those same techniques.

 

But more to the point, there's a tremendous worldwide supply shortage right now for N95 and other masks precisely because so many are needed for medical workers.  So if the medical establishment started recommending the public wear them as well, that would only exacerbate the already severe shortages of masks that hospitals and others are experiencing.

 

The WHO and the U.S. government are going to be buying many hundreds of millions of N95 masks now and in the weeks/months ahead to provide to medical workers, precisely because they DO work if handled properly. Thus in this case, I'm paying more attention to what they are doing vs what they are saying in regards to the general public.

 

good post but I don't think we are talking about N95 masks here - I would agree they are effective if used properly

[Farma]

Skynews is reporting they understand a man from London who traveled to Hongkong then Bangkok has tested positive for Covid 19 in Thailand

[zhounan]

I spend two days looking for face masks in many districts in Bangkok, didn't find a piece.

[jackdd]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Contrary to official advice, most foreigners in Thailand are not wearing facemasks in order to help prevent becoming infected with COVID-19.

Which official advice? The official advice is that facemasks don't help unless you are infected with the virus.

So most foreigners are following the official advice.

[graemeaylward]

I agree with all the posters above and follow WHO and NHS (UK) advice which states that masks are of no use at preventing disease, but if someone has it, it can prevent passing it on through droplets from coughing or sneezing!  This makes common sense as the surgeons who wear paper masks are more concerned about spreading any infection they may have to their patients.  As Thailand is clearly so effective at controlling the virus compared with other countries, why aren't other countries contacting Thailand for advice?  e.g. UK now has over 100 cases in only a few days and it is spreading quickly.  Thailand only 47???? in 8 weeks!!!!