Thailand’s impressive battle against COVID-19 result of decades-long efforts

[sambum]

5 hours ago, ezzra said:

Not really, no way you can prepare a nation of 70 million people to a pandemic... is just that Thai people have taken this threat more seriously than most other countries around the world and acted accordingly, where in ma many countries people throw cation to the wind Thai people are still wearing masks and mindful of the virus coming back...

Correct! My wife and all her friends have been terrified to go out of the house, and only recently have they begun meeting again occasionally - hands sanitised and faces masked and for the most part observing "social distancing" (No hugs or kisses on cheeks for instance!)!

 

Credit where credit is due, but in a province where there have been no cases for more than 60 days, in a country which has no home grown cases - only Thais coming back home from other countries and bringing the virus with them, is it not time to ease the restrictions a bit more and discontinue this "State of Emergency" and allow more businesses to open?  (Open air bars for instance?) Or is it a case of No 1 Boss using his powers to say "I can stop you drinking and enjoying yourselves whenever I want, so just remember that when you are planning your next anti Government protests"?

Edited June 21, 2020 by sambum

[Traubert]

10 minutes ago, sapson said:

 

Another day, another release of utter boll@cks from another minister.

 

The copious verbal flatulence released daily by this non elected military group is tedious.

And an inability to understand doesn't help...

[sandyf]

5 hours ago, ezzra said:

Not really, no way you can prepare a nation of 70 million people to a pandemic... is just that Thai people have taken this threat more seriously than most other countries around the world and acted accordingly, where in ma many countries people throw cation to the wind Thai people are still wearing masks and mindful of the virus coming back...

Good post, but you are wrong to say that preparation cannot be made. The UK did a simulation in 2016 but ignored the findings.

 

Exercise Cygnus was a simulation exercise carried out by NHS England in October 2016 to estimate the impact of a hypothetical H2N2 influenza pandemic on the United Kingdom.^[1][2][3] The exercise showed that the pandemic would cause the country's health system to collapse from a lack of resources,^[2][4] with Sally Davies, the Chief Medical Officer at the time, stating that a lack of medical ventilators and the logistics of disposal of dead bodies were serious problems.^[5][6] As of April 2020, the full results of the exercise remained classified.^[7]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise_Cygnus

[Millcx]

5 hours ago, scorecard said:

''...don't believe the numbers..."

 

A few days ago I was talking to 2 Thai uni professor buddies,  they raised this point and both said initially they didn't believe the case numbers, new infections, hospitalized, deaths, etc.

 

They both also mentioned that all of these numbers have remained without query for many weeks, and if they were untrue by now somebody would have discovered they were false and it would have reached the media quickly. 

And who in the media would have reported it 555555 ... Now that is funny

[Purdey]

The fewer you test the lower the Covid numbers. Did they ever catch those ladies who flew in from South Korea and ran off to Esarn?

As with the tricky way road deaths are only counted at the scene and not in the hospital, not counting those who die of Covid at home in rural areas is a way to keep numbers low.

The current government has never given the feeling of integrity or transparency. Why now, suddenly, everyone is so sure of their numbers. 

[simtemple]

5 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Thailand has many smart Scientists and Doctors.

Some of the best in the world.

Way to go.

Have you encountered any of them? At Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, I was being treated for a spinal injury. It took them 6 weeks to discover I had a broken pelvis. My Embassy told me to return home as soon as possible. 

[ToddinChonburi]

I thought this was a joke , Closing Bangkok and sending the bus loads of people through out the entire country. Taking several weeks to close one beach at a time. Closing one business while the next one stays open, talking about everything that stayed open and didn't close. Arresting a farang on  Pattaya beach while packing the train full of people going back to work in Bangkok.  just a few observations.

[sead]

Oh my. Who put these ideas in their heads. 

[DrTuner]

Impressive as in only a few thousand dead.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-53073046

 

Xinhua is earning their baht with these spins.

https://www.thaienquirer.com/7301/thai-media-is-outsourcing-much-of-its-coronavirus-coverage-to-beijing-and-thats-just-the-start/

[sandyf]

1 hour ago, transam said:

Thought folk were boxed up, cremated in very short order here.....????

Yes and No, They are embalmed and boxed as you say quite quickly, usually at 4pm on the day the body becomes available. Interment or cremation can be 3 to 7 days later depending on family circumstances.

Interment is very slow and I doubt if any temple would do more than 2 a day. Cremation is a bit quicker but wouldn't be very many a day.

Not long ago it was in the news that families in Wuhan were still queuing up for the urns.

[rupert the bear]

a lot of things just dont add up.cambodia and laos,health systems with low nos -well good luck with that,dictatorships  and a lack of real info.they have that in common for sure.the big one- ZERO testing,hospital by me wants 6400B a test .absurd is the politest word,all agencies say testing is the key so if u test u will see the extent of the problem or the lack of it,who has it and to what extent.the govt allowed chinese in here come what may so that doesnt add up either.the PRC govt were the ones who stopped them coming really not this end!!now theyve screwed up the economy.no ones been helped out at a business level,no money they say .spent it all on arms,chinese tek and trains!thats another question for another day ,the inability to open up the economy has cost most a great deal .hotels up for sale in large nos, massive unemployment,masses of condos still being built,who will buy them the thais most certainly not and if no one is allowed in......,and and and,let people move about in the region where its contained,s korea,hk taiwan singapore philippines malaysia japan are good candidates.test the people when they arrive,stay in their hotel room till they get the result and then life goes on,this is madness,countries in europe are opening up now its passed,greece italy  france spain etc.the nos show for people under 64 the chances are less than a traffic accident....in europe not here!!!so the odds are pretty good!!get on with it or how long ?till no cases anywhere .thats forever,the apathy of the culture,terror of authority and inability to ask questions is why the army govt has been able to get away with this.if we look at the region its the same mould everywhere,dictatorships-camb,laos,burma,singapore,hk,china,philippines.its only s korea and taiwan that stand as functional democracies.the real damage is apparent as this isnt a balanced economy,itll get worse.some of the sheer guff spoken about tourism is beyond the pale,hi spending rich hi so people oh please,they go to classy places to spend their money,europe is cultured and articulate,paris milan florence greek islands etc,all at the same price as here or cheaper and hassle free,its hardly an articulate culture,xenophobic unwelcoming and renowned for rip offs and being difficult.lets be honest just for a moment why would cultured super rich come here!!??the self delusion is  truly......amazing!

[animatic]

5 hours ago, Thailand said:

The years of subjugation by various military governments is more likely a big factor in ensuring that the various curfews, lockdowns and other rules were followed by the general populace.

 

Combine that with location and a huge dollop of luck.

Thailand for whatever reason dodged a cannon shell.

Well let’s also add that thailand dealt with both Bird flu and SARS. Both within recent memory. Do procedures more in place and expectations more in mind for more people.

[Baerboxer]

6 hours ago, scorecard said:

Add, and in some countries their derelict idiot leaders strongly encouraged them to believe it was a hoax and to ignore the precautions. 

 

Indeed. They also didn't bother closing borders, checking arrivals or enforcing their own rules properly. 

 

Hard as it is for some to swallow, the Thai government acted far more competently than many other so called first world governments.

Edited June 21, 2020 by Baerboxer

[Snig27]

6 hours ago, mfd101 said:

Would be interesting to see some accurate stats on 'excess deaths ' (ie compared to the previous year) for the Dec-June period

I was looking at exactly those a few days back on another site and they are in line with what you'd expect. No massive blowout. 

[sambum]

22 minutes ago, rupert the bear said:

a lot of things just dont add up.cambodia and laos,health systems with low nos -well good luck with that,dictatorships  and a lack of real info.they have that in common for sure.the big one- ZERO testing,hospital by me wants 6400B a test .absurd is the politest word,all agencies say testing is the key so if u test u will see the extent of the problem or the lack of it,who has it and to what extent.the govt allowed chinese in here come what may so that doesnt add up either.the PRC govt were the ones who stopped them coming really not this end!!now theyve screwed up the economy.no ones been helped out at a business level,no money they say .spent it all on arms,chinese tek and trains!thats another question for another day ,the inability to open up the economy has cost most a great deal .hotels up for sale in large nos, massive unemployment,masses of condos still being built,who will buy them the thais most certainly not and if no one is allowed in......,and and and,let people move about in the region where its contained,s korea,hk taiwan singapore philippines malaysia japan are good candidates.test the people when they arrive,stay in their hotel room till they get the result and then life goes on,this is madness,countries in europe are opening up now its passed,greece italy  france spain etc.the nos show for people under 64 the chances are less than a traffic accident....in europe not here!!!so the odds are pretty good!!get on with it or how long ?till no cases anywhere .thats forever,the apathy of the culture,terror of authority and inability to ask questions is why the army govt has been able to get away with this.if we look at the region its the same mould everywhere,dictatorships-camb,laos,burma,singapore,hk,china,philippines.its only s korea and taiwan that stand as functional democracies.the real damage is apparent as this isnt a balanced economy,itll get worse.some of the sheer guff spoken about tourism is beyond the pale,hi spending rich hi so people oh please,they go to classy places to spend their money,europe is cultured and articulate,paris milan florence greek islands etc,all at the same price as here or cheaper and hassle free,its hardly an articulate culture,xenophobic unwelcoming and renowned for rip offs and being difficult.lets be honest just for a moment why would cultured super rich come here!!??the self delusion is  truly......amazing!

You make some good points, but just a quick question for you:-

 

Is your caps lock button broken? 

[DrTuner]

5 minutes ago, Snig27 said:

I was looking at exactly those a few days back on another site and they are in line with what you'd expect. No massive blowout. 

About 1000-1500 excess per month since January, probably has been going on since October or so. The virus has been in Thailand long before it became a known issue. Chinese very likely knew of it's existence and covered it up, enabling Thailand as a major tourist hub to become one of the superspreaders.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-53073046

 

Their source: Thailand Department of Provincial Administration. Unclear if that includes the Bangkok Metropolitan area or not.

[spidermike007]

5 hours ago, scorecard said:

''...don't believe the numbers..."

 

A few days ago I was talking to 2 Thai uni professor buddies,  they raised this point and both said initially they didn't believe the case numbers, new infections, hospitalized, deaths, etc.

 

They both also mentioned that all of these numbers have remained without query for many weeks, and if they were untrue by now somebody would have discovered they were false and it would have reached the media quickly. 

I agree with the last statement. There is just no way to hide the sickness, and the death, if it was happening on a significant scale. Not in this day and age. Not with social media.

 

Thailand beat this thing, fair and square, and I give them alot of credit for that. Covid is gone from Thailand. As much as many panic mongers seemed to wish for it, the Zombie Apocalypse is NOT going to happen here. And I do agree Thailand has very good health care. I would MUCH rather be sick and in the hospital here, than in the hapless USA. Especially when cost is taken into account. I have seen and met alot of very good doctors here, and they give you five or ten minutes, not 80 seconds like in the US. I read one account of a guy in the US who was uninsured, in the hospital for a few weeks with Covid, and handed a bill for $411,000 when he left. 

 

If there is a second wave here, it is going to come from outside of the country. Let us hope and pray that does not happen. The people and the economy cannot afford a second economic shutdown. 

[DrTuner]

1 minute ago, spidermike007 said:

There is just no way to hide the sickness, and the death, if it was happening on a significant scale. Not in this day and age. Not with social media.

The significant amount that could trigger some chatter in social media would probably be 10000+ deaths per month in a small area in Bangkok. 1-1.5k didn't ring any bells.

[SunsetT]

6 hours ago, Thailand said:

The years of subjugation by various military governments is more likely a big factor in ensuring that the various curfews, lockdowns and other rules were followed by the general populace.

 

Combine that with location and a huge dollop of luck.

Thailand for whatever reason dodged a cannon shell.

Also the ability to mobilise surplus manpower of police and government workers who are usually sitting around doing nothing. This would be impossible in the UK as police, Healthcare, and public servant numbers have been stripped to the bone over the last 10 years by the 'Austerity' program of the current Conservative Govt.

 

[sapson]

28 minutes ago, rupert the bear said:

a lot of things just dont add up.cambodia and laos,health systems with low nos -well good luck with that,dictatorships  and a lack of real info.they have that in common for sure.the big one- ZERO testing,hospital by me wants 6400B a test .absurd is the politest word,all agencies say testing is the key so if u test u will see the extent of the problem or the lack of it,who has it and to what extent.the govt allowed chinese in here come what may so that doesnt add up either.the PRC govt were the ones who stopped them coming really not this end!!now theyve screwed up the economy.no ones been helped out at a business level,no money they say .spent it all on arms,chinese tek and trains!thats another question for another day ,the inability to open up the economy has cost most a great deal .hotels up for sale in large nos, massive unemployment,masses of condos still being built,who will buy them the thais most certainly not and if no one is allowed in......,and and and,let people move about in the region where its contained,s korea,hk taiwan singapore philippines malaysia japan are good candidates.test the people when they arrive,stay in their hotel room till they get the result and then life goes on,this is madness,countries in europe are opening up now its passed,greece italy  france spain etc.the nos show for people under 64 the chances are less than a traffic accident....in europe not here!!!so the odds are pretty good!!get on with it or how long ?till no cases anywhere .thats forever,the apathy of the culture,terror of authority and inability to ask questions is why the army govt has been able to get away with this.if we look at the region its the same mould everywhere,dictatorships-camb,laos,burma,singapore,hk,china,philippines.its only s korea and taiwan that stand as functional democracies.the real damage is apparent as this isnt a balanced economy,itll get worse.some of the sheer guff spoken about tourism is beyond the pale,hi spending rich hi so people oh please,they go to classy places to spend their money,europe is cultured and articulate,paris milan florence greek islands etc,all at the same price as here or cheaper and hassle free,its hardly an articulate culture,xenophobic unwelcoming and renowned for rip offs and being difficult.lets be honest just for a moment why would cultured super rich come here!!??the self delusion is  truly......amazing!

You have made some good points and a friendly thought... maybe if split into a few paragraphs would make it easier for us with crappy vision to read.

[SunsetT]

Someone posted on here back in February or March that, until then during last winter season, the numbers who had died of respiratory pneumonia in Thailand were double the previous year! If these were in fact Covid19 deaths then would Thailand's response have been rated so highly? Id love to see the up to date figures on RP deaths for this year if anyone has them.

Edited June 21, 2020 by SunsetT

[Max69xl]

6 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Thailand has many smart Scientists and Doctors.

Some of the best in the world.

Way to go.

Really? Did you read that in MAD magazine? Name one Thai scientist. 

[tlandtday]

6 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Thailand has many smart Scientists and Doctors.

Some of the best in the world.

Way to go.

haha that is so funny I sure hope it is tongue in cheek lol 

[kcpattaya]

Propaganda...

[moe666]

people keep complaining the numbers are not correct, I think you will find that problem in every country who has had a major out break. A few countries have stopped publishing the numbers because of what it tells the world about how poorly prepared that country was for this virus.

People have to remember that most of the asian countries have had a few outbreaks of various virus over the last 25 years, these outbreaks prepared them for this one. Someone came on here a while back and made the statement that Hong Kong had no shut down. But by doing a bit of research it turns out the people of Hong kong demanded a shut down because they remembered the havoc that sars had caused. Every country who jumped on this virus early and hard has had low numbers of virus infected citizens and low number of deaths. You have to give Thailand kudos for the way they controlled the virus and kept the numbers low. I know that is hard for some of the folks here who would have prefered to see Thailand fail

[tlandtday]

31 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

I agree with the last statement. There is just no way to hide the sickness, and the death, if it was happening on a significant scale. Not in this day and age. Not with social media.

 

Thailand beat this thing, fair and square, and I give them alot of credit for that. Covid is gone from Thailand. As much as many panic mongers seemed to wish for it, the Zombie Apocalypse is NOT going to happen here. And I do agree Thailand has very good health care. I would MUCH rather be sick and in the hospital here, than in the hapless USA. Especially when cost is taken into account. I have seen and met alot of very good doctors here, and they give you five or ten minutes, not 80 seconds like in the US. I read one account of a guy in the US who was uninsured, in the hospital for a few weeks with Covid, and handed a bill for $411,000 when he left. 

 

If there is a second wave here, it is going to come from outside of the country. Let us hope and pray that does not happen. The people and the economy cannot afford a second economic shutdown. 

Let's use some common sense.   What is the benefit of disclosing you or someone you know has covid even if only suspected because there exists little or no testing here.  Now in the vast majority of cases the symptoms are mild unless sick or elderly in which case it can easily be attributed to pneumonia, dengue, etc which may actually be the result of covid. 

 

So let's examine the great benefits of you or a loved one disclosing themselves for having covid - 1) quarantine 2) isolation 3) lost wages or likely loss of job 4) hospital expenses you can ill afford 5) possible contagion of covid from visiting a hospital  ) quarantine and possible job loss for your entire family and friends 

 

So while the western countries feel the effects of covid miraculously countries such as Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam and OTHERS have done what nobody else could do and all the while allowing visitors to stream in from the country that started the whole thing.

 

I am not even addressing the fact that many think up to 40 percent are non symptomatic carriers.  When was the last time you saw anyone tested?  

Edited June 21, 2020 by tlandtday

[Cake Monster]

31 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

About 1000-1500 excess per month since January, probably has been going on since October or so. The virus has been in Thailand long before it became a known issue. Chinese very likely knew of it's existence and covered it up, enabling Thailand as a major tourist hub to become one of the superspreaders.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-53073046

 

Their source: Thailand Department of Provincial Administration. Unclear if that includes the Bangkok Metropolitan area or not.

There was even a thread here on TVF, that was started by somebody who inquired if Covid 19 was in Pattaya in November.

The question was asked, as around that time, there were so  many people who were sick with what now appears could ( repeat could ) have been symptoms of Covid19.

I myself, and my wife were very sick for about a Month in late October / Early November with these symptoms.

[unblocktheplanet]

Sorry to pop your 'for the prevention of disease only' balloon, as the depty perm secty said, it was just luck. SO FAR! Don't let your guard down!

[Benmart]

6 hours ago, scorecard said:

Add, and in some countries their derelict idiot leaders strongly encouraged them to believe it was a hoax and to ignore the precautions. 

Dereliction and idiocy is more local, and leaders have no monopoly on those traits.

[DrTuner]

35 minutes ago, SunsetT said:

Someone posted on here back in February or March that, until then during last winter season, the numbers who had died of respiratory pneumonia in Thailand were double the previous year! If these were in fact Covid19 deaths then would Thailand's response have been rated so highly? Id love to see the up to date figures on RP deaths for this year if anyone has them.

https://hdcservice.moph.go.th/hdc/reports/report.php?source=formated/death298.php&cat_id=491672679818600345dc1833920051b2&id=b4ea22252bb533f3f9225dfcab83d43a

 

Its not monthly but per budget year.

 

BBC used the civic data: https://stat.bora.dopa.go.th/stat/statnew/statMONTH/INTERNET/#/statdeath

 

That's the only reliable data as the usurpers can't make the dead undead. Although I'm pretty sure they'll try to spin it as "another unknown epidemic" or some other usual BS.