Expats getting a Covid-19 vaccine in Pattaya for dummies with emphasis on expats outside the Thai system

[CRUNCHER]

The only Pattaya hospital on Intervac is BPH and I am not sure if they even know they are on the "list".  Anyway they don't seem to have any vaccine.

 

It appears that other local hospitals are at best not very farang friendly, except perhaps if you have a pink ID card.

 

That leaves the so called (or was) walk-in site at the indoor stadium.  Can farangs use this?  Has anyone any experience?  In particular how long to wait for the first jab and how long between jabs.

 

I know it is not the most luxurious option, but maybe has its good points - like availability.

[Leaver]

It must be remembered, Pattaya / Thailand is only one dead expat from covid away from making global media headlines for all the wrong reasons.  

 

We all know Thailand is reactionary, not proactive.  As long as there is no negative publicity, they plod along here.

 

If / when that death happens, then you may finally see vaccinating elderly expats being taken seriously here.  

[WaveHunter]

29 minutes ago, Leaver said:

It must be remembered, Pattaya / Thailand is only one dead expat from covid away from making global media headlines for all the wrong reasons.  

 

We all know Thailand is reactionary, not proactive.  As long as there is no negative publicity, they plod along here.

 

If / when that death happens, then you may finally see vaccinating elderly expats being taken seriously here.  

Just my opinion but I think your assessment is a little bit harsh.  Thailand has been both proactive and reactive in this pandemic during the last year and a half, and it's been no different in any other country in the world.

 

When you consider that Covid-19 was (and still is) a novel virus, it would simply be impossible to always be proactive.  Reacting to the virus is often the only way to deal with it.

 

Sure Thailand has made many mistakes but it's becuase "trial & error" is often the only strategy available.

 

Of course there is good reason to be critical of the vaccination rollout, bit if you look at the actual statistics of how many daily vaccinations are actually happening right now, it's really not too shabby at all.

 

1.2 million vaccine doses have been administered since Monday June 7.  Yesterday, June 9, 337,000 were inoculated.  Comparing that to the the cumulative total doses administered of 5.4 million since the soft rollout in February, this week's tally and the daily average are pretty impressive IMO. 

 

As the rollout continues and becomes more fine-tuned, it should even get better.  Additionally,  with a private hospital rollout of  10 million Moderna doses (4 million of which will be in the first lot), and negotiations in progress by the government with Pfizer and J&J, there's even more reason to feel optimistic.

 

I guess people can look at the situation in a pessimistic way or an optimistic way.  What actually transpires will probably be somewhere between the two views, but I hardly can think of it in doom & gloom terms.

Edited June 10, 2021 by WaveHunter

[Guderian]

20 minutes ago, Leaver said:

It must be remembered, Pattaya / Thailand is only one dead expat from covid away from making global media headlines for all the wrong reasons.  

 

We all know Thailand is reactionary, not proactive.  As long as there is no negative publicity, they plod along here.

 

If / when that death happens, then you may finally see vaccinating elderly expats being taken seriously here.  

 

I wrote a piece a week or two back that was only half tongue-in-cheek, where sometime in 2022 there will be an international inquiry into why so many elderly and vulnerable expats had died in Pattaya during the second half of 2021. Giving evidence to the inquiry, Prayut and Anutin looked sad and explained that Thailand had made it clear from Day 1 that foreigners would be included in the free national vaccine rollout, and they had made every effort to get them to register for it but, sadly, many of them had failed to do so and had thus deprived themselves of protection from the deadlier variants that had arrived in the country when it opened up to foreign tourists in October 2021. Look at all the news articles, they said, it was clear that we had included foreigners in our plans, and we even set up a dedicated, easy-to-use English-language website, ThailandIntervac, so that expats could register for a vaccine of their choice at a hospital that suited them. We implored them to register, but our pleas fell on deaf ears, and very few expats bothered to do so and thus remained unvaccinated and unprotected. So sad.

[Leaver]

6 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

Just my opinion but I think your assessment is a little bit harsh.  Thailand has been both proactive and reactive in this pandemic during the last year and a half, and it's been no different in any other country in the world.

 

When you consider that Covid-19 was (and still is) a novel virus, it would simply be impossible to always be proactive.  Reacting to the virus is often the only way to deal with it.

 

Sure Thailand has made many mistakes but it's becuase "trial & error" is often the only strategy available.

 

Of course there is good reason to be critical of the vaccination rollout, bit if you look at the actual statistics of how many daily vaccinations are actually happening right now, it's really not too shabby at all.

 

1.2 million vaccine doses have been administered since Monday June 7.  Yesterday, June 9, 337,000 were inoculated.  Comparing that to the the cumulative total doses administered of 5.4 million since the soft rollout in February, this week's tally and the daily average are pretty impressive IMO. 

 

As the rollout continues and becomes more fine-tuned, it should even get better.  Additionally,  with a private hospital rollout of  10 million Moderna doses (4 million of which will be in the first lot), and negotiations in progress by the government with Pfizer and J&J, there's even more reason to feel optimistic.

 

I guess people can look at the situation in a pessimistic way or an optimistic way.  What actually transpires will probably be somewhere between the two views, but I hardly can think of it in doom & gloom terms.

 

How many foreigners, particularly retired expats, who are in the most at risk group, have currently been vaccinated, excluding embassy staff?  I think that statistic says it all.

 

Only a matter of time before the family of a dying or dead expat goes to the media saying 'Thailand left my father to die because he's not Thai" or similar.  I'm sure the BBC would run with it.

 

In any case, they certainly dropped the ball here when it came to ordering vaccines.  They should have ordered a lot more, a lot earlier on.  Hard to deny this.  

[WaveHunter]

40 minutes ago, Guderian said:

 

I wrote a piece a week or two back that was only half tongue-in-cheek, where sometime in 2022 there will be an international inquiry into why so many elderly and vulnerable expats had died in Pattaya during the second half of 2021. Giving evidence to the inquiry, Prayut and Anutin looked sad and explained that Thailand had made it clear from Day 1 that foreigners would be included in the free national vaccine rollout, and they had made every effort to get them to register for it but, sadly, many of them had failed to do so and had thus deprived themselves of protection from the deadlier variants that had arrived in the country when it opened up to foreign tourists in October 2021. Look at all the news articles, they said, it was clear that we had included foreigners in our plans, and we even set up a dedicated, easy-to-use English-language website, ThailandIntervac, so that expats could register for a vaccine of their choice at a hospital that suited them. We implored them to register, but our pleas fell on deaf ears, and very few expats bothered to do so and thus remained unvaccinated and unprotected. So sad.

I'm as critical as anyone about the present state of the InterVac site but in spite of that if you look at the vaccination rates this week, the rollout itself has been fairly impressive, and can only get better as it becomes more fine-tuned, the InterVac site gets straightened out, private hospitals began to vaccinate with Moderna, and the government brings Pfizer and J&J, as well as Moderna into the supply chain.

 

This week, on average, 408,000 innoculations are being made per day.  WIth an adult population of 53 million people, reaching herd immunity with 70% being vaccinated will require 74 million doses being administered. 

 

At the present rate, that would require about 6 months to achieve, and that is only assuming the daily rate stays around 408,000.  If it is higher which it probably will be, herd immunity could be here well before the end of the year.

 

How long it actually takes is of course anyone's guess right now, but the situation is hardly one of doom & gloom that many are painting.

Edited June 10, 2021 by WaveHunter

[Jingthing]

The plot sickens, version 78.

 

"Government spokesman" says hold off on registering until issues are resolved. 

 

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Jingthing

[redwood1]

50 minutes ago, Leaver said:

 

How many foreigners, particularly retired expats, who are in the most at risk group, have currently been vaccinated, excluding embassy staff?  I think that statistic says it all.

 

Only a matter of time before the family of a dying or dead expat goes to the media saying 'Thailand left my father to die because he's not Thai" or similar.  I'm sure the BBC would run with it.

 

In any case, they certainly dropped the ball here when it came to ordering vaccines.  They should have ordered a lot more, a lot earlier on.  Hard to deny this.  

 

And what of the people who don't want the vax....I bet they are not upset....

[Guderian]

24 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

The plot sickens, version 78.

 

"Government spokesman" says hold off on registering until issues are resolved. 

 

Are they referring to the minor issue of them running out of vaccines, lol?

[Jingthing]

10 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

 

And what of the people who don't want the vax....I bet they are not upset....

Nothing to do with this topic. 

[Leaver]

59 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

I'm as critical as anyone about the present state of the InterVac site but in spite of that if you look at the vaccination rates this week, the rollout itself has been fairly impressive, and can only get better as it becomes more fine-tuned, the InterVac site gets straightened out, private hospitals began to vaccinate with Moderna, and the government brings Pfizer and J&J, as well as Moderna into the supply chain.

 

This week, on average, 408,000 innoculations are being made per day.  WIth an adult population of 53 million people, reaching herd immunity with 70% being vaccinated will require 74 million doses being administered. 

 

At the present rate, that would require about 6 months to achieve, and that is only assuming the daily rate stays around 408,000.  If it is higher which it probably will be, herd immunity could be here well before the end of the year.

 

How long it actually takes is of course anyone's guess right now, but the situation is hardly one of doom & gloom that many are painting.

 

I don't think members are focusing on doom and gloom, just the fact that even with a good vaccine supply and a good vaccination rate, Thailand is still 6 months away from opening up. 

 

I suppose for those wishing to get back here ASAP, that is doom and gloom.   

 

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Leaver

[WaveHunter]

24 minutes ago, Leaver said:

 

I don't think members are focusing on doom and gloom, just the fact that even with a good vaccine supply and a good vaccination rate, Thailand is still 6 months away from opening up. 

 

I suppose for those wishing to get back here ASAP, that is doom and gloom.   

 

 

The whole country might be six months away from opening up but the key tourist areas like Chiang Mai and Pattaya will probably open up much sooner.  Chiang Mai, for instance, is planning on opening to tourists on August 1st, similar, using a plan similar to Phuket's sandbox model.

 

I just think the general tone on this forum is far more gloomy than it should be.

 

[Guderian]

3 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

I just think the general tone on this forum is far more gloomy than it should be.

 

I admire your optimism, but how many expats in Pattaya have been vaccinated so far, and how many have a definite, confirmed booking for a vaccination? Ten, maybe twenty who've actually received a shot, and perhaps double that number with confirmed appointments? Out of perhaps 40,000 expats living and working in Pattaya, that doesn't make me feel optimistic. My major concern is that they will vaccinate the Thai population quickly and efficiently, open up to tourists, but conveniently forget about the foreigners who'll still be trying to register for a jab on ThailandIntervac. IMHO, though, it's far more likely that Siam Bioscience will run into serious production problems, just as happened at AZ production facilities in Europe. I believe that this is the first vaccine produced by Siam Bioscience, too, so there's probably still a steep learning curve to climb, it's a different ballgame altogether to producing generic meds that have been around for decades.

[Leaver]

20 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

The whole country might be six months away from opening up but the key tourist areas like Chiang Mai and Pattaya will probably open up much sooner.  Chiang Mai, for instance, is planning on opening to tourists on August 1st, similar, using a plan similar to Phuket's sandbox model.

 

I just think the general tone on this forum is far more gloomy than it should be.

 

 

Phuket is an island province, it can be quarantined easily.  The mainland is different.  

 

What's stopping an infected bar girl in Pattaya returning home to Issan, or an infected bar girl in Issan returning to work in Pattaya?  Nothing.  

 

Cities like Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai etc can not effectively be sealed off, unless we see something like we saw when the red shirts were rioting and the Thai Army, and even then, it's difficult.  

 

I know what the Thai's have said, and I know what the Thai's want to do, if it does happen, it doesn't necessarily mean it will be safe for everyone concerned.

[Jingthing]

Optimism?

Schmoptimism.

 

Back to reality.

 

The one local hospital on the intervac list albeit never shown as having any vaccines, Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, has now disappeared entirely from the list.

 

I wonder what the story is behind  that?

 

Was it a mistake that it was ever there in the first place?

 

We had reports before that BPH was telling people that they didn't know about it.

 

I think local expats were taking the now gone Pattaya listing as an encouragement to sign up on intervac. Even though showing no vaccines surely "they" have Pattaya expats in mind.

 

Well, what now?

 

 

https://thailandintervac.com/

 

COVID-19 Vaccination locations

MedPark Hospital (Available Now)

3333 Rama IV Rd., Khlong Toei, Khlong Toei, Bangkok

 

Vimut Hospital (Available Now)

500, Phahonyothin Rd., Samsen Nai,Phaya Thai,Bangkok

 

Phyathai 2 Hospital (Available Now)

943, Phahonyothin Rd., Samsen Nai,Phaya Thai,Bangkok

 

Bangrak Vaccination and Health Center

9 South Sathorn Rd.,Yannawa,Sathorn,Bangkok

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Jingthing

[scubascuba3]

43 minutes ago, Guderian said:

 

I admire your optimism, but how many expats in Pattaya have been vaccinated so far, and how many have a definite, confirmed booking for a vaccination? Ten, maybe twenty who've actually received a shot, and perhaps double that number with confirmed appointments? Out of perhaps 40,000 expats living and working in Pattaya, that doesn't make me feel optimistic. My major concern is that they will vaccinate the Thai population quickly and efficiently, open up to tourists, but conveniently forget about the foreigners who'll still be trying to register for a jab on ThailandIntervac. IMHO, though, it's far more likely that Siam Bioscience will run into serious production problems, just as happened at AZ production facilities in Europe. I believe that this is the first vaccine produced by Siam Bioscience, too, so there's probably still a steep learning curve to climb, it's a different ballgame altogether to producing generic meds that have been around for decades.

I don't think it will be long before Thais not just see us as dirty falang but also unvaccinated falang and so a danger

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, scubascuba3 said:

I don't think it will be long before Thais not just see us as dirty falang but also unvaccinated falang and so a danger

I don't disagree but there could be advantages in terms of social distancing.

[Harry2]

Amazing they have dropped BHP from the interval list after 4 days, so all 4 hospitals are BKK based. As well as Chonburi I have seen people from other nearby provinces saying they have secured appointments in BKK & will make the journey - perhaps this is intended?  I am currently weighing up coach versus taxi for the vaccination trip. 

[pontious]

Apparently there is a new website opening on 14 June. Open 1400 to 1800.  Intervac blah blah /  expatriates. Richard Barrow for those clever enough to copy url,s.

[dabhand]

2 hours ago, pontious said:

Apparently there is a new website opening on 14 June. Open 1400 to 1800.  Intervac blah blah /  expatriates. Richard Barrow for those clever enough to copy url,s.

https://twitter.com/RichardBarrow/status/1402926029832744964

 

Tried to open the '/expatriates' link but no success. Maybe it will burst into life on the 14th June at 14.00 as noted on the screenshot within the message.

Edited June 10, 2021 by dabhand

[TaaSaparot]

6 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

I don't think it will be long before Thais not just see us as dirty falang but also unvaccinated falang and so a danger

 

Before other groups, such a migrant workers?

[scubascuba3]

8 hours ago, Harry2 said:

  I am currently weighing up coach versus taxi for the vaccination trip. 

I took the bus Weds and was mostly empty, every 2 hours from Pattaya starting 5am

[jacko45k]

14 hours ago, WaveHunter said:

This week, on average, 408,000 innoculations are being made per day.  WIth an adult population of 53 million people, reaching herd immunity with 70% being vaccinated will require 74 million doses being administered

I was watching an analysis on UK TV which has yet to reach herd immunity, despite having been vaccinating quite efficiently since December. With the new more contagious variants they suggested herd immunity would not be reached until 80% had been double vaccinated. There was also some discussion that children may also have to be brought into this number ...as they most certainly are part of the transmission line. (Not sure of what the benefit is here, they rarely get serious symptoms and in reality that is what the vaccinations prevent). Today the UK shows 54.8 %of the adult population has had 2 doses, and there were 7393 new cases, a rising trend. 

[WaveHunter]

2 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I was watching an analysis on UK TV which has yet to reach herd immunity, despite having been vaccinating quite efficiently since December. With the new more contagious variants they suggested herd immunity would not be reached until 80% had been double vaccinated. There was also some discussion that children may also have to be brought into this number ...as they most certainly are part of the transmission line. (Not sure of what the benefit is here, they rarely get serious symptoms and in reality that is what the vaccinations prevent). Today the UK shows 54.8 %of the adult population has had 2 doses, and there were 7393 new cases, a rising trend. 

Yeah, I think the threshold for herd immunity is something that can't really be known except from a historical perspective after the pandemic has ended. It's only purpose during an ongoing pandemic is just to have some sort of target to shoot for. 

 

During an ongoing pandemic, the only way to assign a threshold value for herd immunity to occur is through mathematical modelling so it's only a hypothetical value.

 

It's only hypothetical becuase it doesn't take into account real world factors like variations in population density in different regions of a country, effectiveness of pre-vaccine prevention like social distancing, and variations in transmissibility / virulence of different variants, and the effectiveness of vaccination rollouts themselves, just to name a few such factors. 

Edited June 11, 2021 by WaveHunter

[WaveHunter]

14 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Optimism?

Schmoptimism.

 

Back to reality.

 

The one local hospital on the intervac list albeit never shown as having any vaccines, Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, has now disappeared entirely from the list.

 

I wonder what the story is behind  that?

 

Was it a mistake that it was ever there in the first place?

 

We had reports before that BPH was telling people that they didn't know about it.

 

I think local expats were taking the now gone Pattaya listing as an encouragement to sign up on intervac. Even though showing no vaccines surely "they" have Pattaya expats in mind.

 

Well, what now?

 

 

https://thailandintervac.com/

 

COVID-19 Vaccination locations

MedPark Hospital (Available Now)

3333 Rama IV Rd., Khlong Toei, Khlong Toei, Bangkok

 

Vimut Hospital (Available Now)

500, Phahonyothin Rd., Samsen Nai,Phaya Thai,Bangkok

 

Phyathai 2 Hospital (Available Now)

943, Phahonyothin Rd., Samsen Nai,Phaya Thai,Bangkok

 

Bangrak Vaccination and Health Center

9 South Sathorn Rd.,Yannawa,Sathorn,Bangkok

 

As you know, officials connected with InterVac have now admitted the site has "issues".  I would say the site has MAJOR issues.  One of them is that they are not listing all hospitals throughout Thailand that have been designated as vaccination locations. 

 

However, this isn't the fault of the InterVac site.  It is the fault of the CCSA.  For weeks now, I keep expecting the CCSA to simply provide a complete list of designated hospitals throughout the Kingdom that will be dispensing vaccines, but they have been curiously silent on this topic, and I find that real troubling. 

 

During this past week, the CCSA is releasing very positive data on the number of vaccinations dispensed daily, but I have seen no reference to where the vaccines are being distributed, except in the Bangkok area, even now after over a month of first commenting that a list of designated hospitals would "soon be announced"

 

If you do a google search, or search the websites of major hospitals throughout Thailand, there is absolutely no information about this either.

 

I think this is not only VERY strange but real concerning. 

 

[WaveHunter]

15 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

I don't think it will be long before Thais not just see us as dirty falang but also unvaccinated falang and so a danger

TIme to start playing the race card again to stir everybody up?  Real nice!

[WaveHunter]

15 hours ago, Guderian said:

 

I admire your optimism, but how many expats in Pattaya have been vaccinated so far, and how many have a definite, confirmed booking for a vaccination? Ten, maybe twenty who've actually received a shot, and perhaps double that number with confirmed appointments? Out of perhaps 40,000 expats living and working in Pattaya, that doesn't make me feel optimistic. My major concern is that they will vaccinate the Thai population quickly and efficiently, open up to tourists, but conveniently forget about the foreigners who'll still be trying to register for a jab on ThailandIntervac. IMHO, though, it's far more likely that Siam Bioscience will run into serious production problems, just as happened at AZ production facilities in Europe. I believe that this is the first vaccine produced by Siam Bioscience, too, so there's probably still a steep learning curve to climb, it's a different ballgame altogether to producing generic meds that have been around for decades.

You have to remember that EVERY person who is unvaccinated is a threat to the population as a whole.  It benefits a Thai national for a foreigner to be vaccinated just as much as for a Thai national to be vaccinated.  Vaccination is not just for your own personal protection; it's for the protection of the population as a whole, so it is EQUALLY important for foreigners to be vaccinated just as quickly as Thai nationals.

[rott]

Is the intervac site still up.? 

Or is it finished now till the new one comes into play on Monday. 

(not getting any response) 

[Guderian]

1 minute ago, rott said:

Is the intervac site still up.? 

Or is it finished now till the new one comes into play on Monday. 

(not getting any response) 

 

It's still there, but it doesn't start up on the dot of noon.

I just tried it again for a laugh and now there are no available dates left this year. Whether that's a glitch or sign of things to come remains to be seen, lol!

[Jingthing]

4 minutes ago, rott said:

Is the intervac site still up.? 

Or is it finished now till the new one comes into play on Monday. 

(not getting any response) 

It's still up but I would suggest leaving it alone unless you intend to register in Bangkok. Wait until June 14 to see the "new" site (same with /expatriates) and whether or not it shows any Pattaya area hospitals. Also I'm sure that many are wondering if their initial registration on intervac without making a booking will be preserved in the new site.

Edited June 11, 2021 by Jingthing