by Gregers Møller

 

Spending New Year in a hospital in Thailand was not quite what Bengt Augustsson and his daughter Isabelle had hoped for when they departed for Thailand on 25 December but it is exactly what happened. 

 

46-year old Bengt Augustsson and his 11-year-old daughter Isabelle had planned to travel to Koh Lipe and other southern islands of Thailand after their first night in Bangkok but those plans quickly changed when Bengt tested positive for covid-19 the morning after they arrived in the country.

 

Following his test results, the pair was taken to a so-called “Hospitel” which is a hotel converted into a hospital for people infected with covid-19. His biggest concern was to be separated from his daughter and to make sure that would not happen he spoke, amongst other places, with the Embassy of Sweden in Bangkok.  

 

Full story: https://scandasia.com/swedish-family-celebrated-new-year-in-isolation-in-thailand/

 

-- © Copyright ScandAsia 2022-01-06

 

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Holiday in a pandemic, what could possibly go wrong.

4 minutes ago, Stocky said:

Holiday in a pandemic, what could possibly go wrong.

In Hawaii? Nothing

In Europe? Nothing

In Disneyland? Nothing

 

In Thailand?

Swasdee Krup

Please bend over & spell RUN ????

7 minutes ago, meechai said:

In Disneyland? Nothing

VEGAS, BABY! ????????????????????????

Thats the risk and expected response if anyone tests positive. 

 

Most people know the risks and accept them before travelling. I assume this Swedish family also knew and accepted the risks. 

 

There’s not really much else in this story - they isolated in a hospitel and I assume, were not separated. 

22 minutes ago, Stocky said:

Holiday in a pandemic, what could possibly go wrong.

Probably less of a risk than the idiots booking cruise ships again in the pandemic and now having their cruise ship isolated again. Can't fix stupid

11 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thats the risk and expected response if anyone tests positive. 

 

Most people know the risks and accept them before travelling. I assume this Swedish family also knew and accepted the risks. 

 

There’s not really much else in this story - they isolated in a hospitel and I assume, were not separated. 

I agree...i thinking the same can happend with the people who seems desperate to going to thailand now.AKA test and go and thaipass

Sum num na seems people left there brain at home.. ????‍♂️

26 minutes ago, Stocky said:

Holiday in a pandemic, what could possibly go wrong.

Spend x mas and new years eve on Tenerife and it was great.

Nice weather, great food, cheap beers and the place were full of tourist.

 

It's possible to travel during the pandemic and the Canary islands has 4 levels they follow.

None of them include the closing down of restaurants or bars and they are at level 3 atm.

 

Just needed a vaccine pass to travel.

No tests before flight or on arrival.

 

Those islands are getting a lot of the money that normally would be spent in Thailand.

 

Not the last time i will go there if this pandemic continues and Thailand insist on keeping their restrictions.

That should have been a calculated risk factor when travelling to Thailand during a pandemic, all facts were known in advance, so it cannot be a surprise worth for a media story.

Aren't Scandis meant to be hardy, strong people? 

 

Here's a picture of a small violin. They rolled the dice and they lost. Cry me a river. 

I know for a fact that Thai nationals testing positive for Omicron in Phuket are sent home to self isolate for 10 days.

I guess that farang Omicron is much more dangerous or it's a insurance scam. take your pick.

5 minutes ago, hugolars said:

I know for a fact that Thai nationals testing positive for Omicron in Phuket are sent home to self isolate for 10 days.

I guess that farang Omicron is much more dangerous or it's a insurance scam. take your pick.

People seem to be saying very little on Phuket but it spread like wildfire from what I read yesterday..

7 minutes ago, hugolars said:

I know for a fact that Thai nationals testing positive for Omicron in Phuket are sent home to self isolate for 10 days.

I guess that farang Omicron is much more dangerous or it's a insurance scam. take your pick.

Home isolation is now preferred so that is good but as a tourist you cant do home isolation. No hotel would want you given the risks to them. So that is just how it is.

 

Now the home isolation thing might be good news for farang residents as there has been news about home isolation being preferred so if you live here you might be able to get home isolation. 

 

Not if you go through the test and go but if you found having the virus while not being on a holliday but living here. 

8 minutes ago, hugolars said:

I know for a fact that Thai nationals testing positive for Omicron in Phuket are sent home to self isolate for 10 days.

I guess that farang Omicron is much more dangerous or it's a insurance scam. take your pick.

i'm not sure they'd be allowed on a plane back to their home.. in Sweden!

Yes you take your risk travelling to Thailand of all places with their draconian measures at this time, even, you know, ordinary decent people looking to live a little and unwind. But nice to see the folk on here don’t disappoint with their special level of empathy. For likes is it? Karma is a b.itch. HNY and welcome to Thailand. 

1 minute ago, daveAustin said:

Yes you take your risk travelling to Thailand of all places with their draconian measures at this time, even, you know, ordinary decent people looking to live a little and unwind. But nice to see the folk on here don’t disappoint with their special level of empathy. For likes is it? Karma is a b.itch. HNY and welcome to Thailand. 

Just write of coming to any  3rd world countries for a maximum 5 years..

2 minutes ago, robblok said:

Home isolation is now preferred so that is good but as a tourist you cant do home isolation. No hotel would want you given the risks to them. So that is just how it is.

 

Now the home isolation thing might be good news for farang residents as there has been news about home isolation being preferred so if you live here you might be able to get home isolation. 

 

Not if you go through the test and go but if you found having the virus while not being on a holliday but living here. 

Thailand should look at other countries and see what they do to please their tourists.

Canary island offer free covid insurance. 

Denmark offer isolation in Hotel and food free of charge for tourists that are tested positive and are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms.

And I'm sure a lot of other countries have similar things for their tourists.

 

If Thailand want their tourists back they have to offer them something, and a bunch of restrictions are not the solution in the long run.

12 minutes ago, Virt said:

Thailand should look at other countries and see what they do to please their tourists.

Canary island offer free covid insurance. 

Denmark offer isolation in Hotel and food free of charge for tourists that are tested positive and are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms.

And I'm sure a lot of other countries have similar things for their tourists.

 

If Thailand want their tourists back they have to offer them something, and a bunch of restrictions are not the solution in the long run.

This.... 

 

If Thailand wishes to improve its tourism, it has to minimise the financial risk for tourists. 

 

As you mention: in providing free Covid-19 insurance and free Hotel Isolation for tourists it sends the message that tourists are valued instead of the current message that they can be freely abused. 

 

That said: I suspect the TAT and CCSA are at odds with their goals - There is no unified and agreed response. Thus we have official TAT spokespeople announcing from an ‘official source’ that Thailand is open for tourism meanwhile other government bodies are putting up brick-walls and making potential tourists jump through hoops. 

 

The Test & Go option was very good solution. 

Sandbox is also a very good solution. 

 

Thailand has to continue to accept there are risks or simply close. 

 

 

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thailand has to continue to accept there are risks or simply close.

You made the decision for them, then. Simply close.

27 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

30 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thailand has to continue to accept there are risks or simply close.

You made the decision for them, then. Simply close.

 

I wouldn’t close... the borders are too porous anyway (migrants crossing all the time).... 

 

Nothing can be made water tight. There is going to be a major Omicron outbreak in Thailand. 

 

The key issue is ensuring the hospitals are not overwhelmed with serious cases. 

 

The issues in the UK is a diminishing workforce as people self isolate.

 

At some point we (the world) are going to have to ‘live with it’ as we live with a cold. 

 

Hopefully treatment catches up and even for those who would become seriously ill Covid is not serious with treatments. 

 

 

The concern which is not often discussed is the potential for further development of the virus into a variant of consequence (more serious than variant of concern) - but, it would see the virus has achieved its equilibrium (if there is such a thing) and that Omircron while highly transmissive, is far less serious. 

 

I believe opening - Test & Go remains a viable option. 

 

My concern is not the virus itself or getting unwell from it, my concern is dealing with he hassles of not being able to travel overseas to work - thus, a week before I’m due to travel I self isolate anyway. 

 

I also believe PCR tests should be mandated before all international flights, simply to protect everyone else from the same inconvenience of testing positive while most likely asymptomatic. 

 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Following his test results, the pair was taken to a so-called “Hospitel” which is a hotel converted into a hospital for people infected with covid-19. His biggest concern was to be separated from his daughter and to make sure that would not happen he spoke, amongst other places, with the Embassy of Sweden in Bangkok.  

They were going to separate him from his 11 year old daughter, that can’t be right, can it?

Where would she have stayed? In the linked article there is no mention of any other family travelling with them. 

9 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Following his test results, the pair was taken to a so-called “Hospitel” which is a hotel converted into a hospital for people infected with covid-19. His biggest concern was to be separated from his daughter and to make sure that would not happen he spoke, amongst other places, with the Embassy of Sweden in Bangkok.  

They were going to separate him from his 11 year old daughter, that can’t be right, can it?

Where would she have stayed? In the linked article there is no mention of any other family travelling with them. 

NO... They were not going to separate the father from the 11 year old daughter. 

 

But, the father was concerned that this ‘could have happened’ so he pre-empted that possibility. Possibly due to paranoia spread on forums such as this where I have previously read comments of posters who know nothings and spread hysteria that parents will be separated from their children if they test positive - which isn’t true of course. 

 

 

When a member of family tests positive, they are asked to isolate together. 

In this case, both would have been allowed to isolate in the same room, if hospital isolation they would have isolated them in a ward together, or moved two beds into hospital room to isolate together, or in a shared ‘hospitel’ room.

 

Parents are not isolated from their children when either tests positive for Covid-19.

 

 

 

5 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

NO... They were not going to separate the father from the 11 year old daughter. 

 

But, the father was concerned that this ‘could have happened’ so he pre-empted that possibility. Possibly due to paranoia spread on forums such as this where I have previously read comments of posters who know nothings and spread hysteria that parents will be separated from their children if they test positive - which isn’t true of course. 

 

 

When a member of family tests positive, they are asked to isolate together. 

In this case, both would have been allowed to isolate in the same room, if hospital isolation they would have isolated them in a ward together, or moved two beds into hospital room to isolate together, or in a shared ‘hospitel’ room.

 

Parents are not isolated from their children when either tests positive for Covid-19.

 

 

 

Got to wonder where on earth the father got the idea they were going to separate them, to the extent he talked to the embassy.
 

Very odd, though could have been a language barrier communication issue and that’s how the embassy got involved. 

4 hours ago, meechai said:

In Hawaii? Nothing

In Europe? Nothing

In Disneyland? Nothing WRONG IN SINGAPORE

 

 

https://www.npr.org/2021/11/01/1051146829/shanghai-disneyland-covid-19-shut-down

2 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

I wouldn’t close... the borders are too porous anyway (migrants crossing all the time).... 

 

Nothing can be made water tight. There is going to be a major Omicron outbreak in Thailand. 

 

The key issue is ensuring the hospitals are not overwhelmed with serious cases. 

 

The issues in the UK is a diminishing workforce as people self isolate.

 

At some point we (the world) are going to have to ‘live with it’ as we live with a cold. 

 

Hopefully treatment catches up and even for those who would become seriously ill Covid is not serious with treatments. 

 

 

The concern which is not often discussed is the potential for further development of the virus into a variant of consequence (more serious than variant of concern) - but, it would see the virus has achieved its equilibrium (if there is such a thing) and that Omircron while highly transmissive, is far less serious. 

 

I believe opening - Test & Go remains a viable option. 

 

My concern is not the virus itself or getting unwell from it, my concern is dealing with he hassles of not being able to travel overseas to work - thus, a week before I’m due to travel I self isolate anyway. 

 

I also believe PCR tests should be mandated before all international flights, simply to protect everyone else from the same inconvenience of testing positive while most likely asymptomatic. 

 

A negative PCR tests prior to the departure will not give you a guarantee to test negative on arrival.

You could have the virus at the time your first PCR test is taken, but it might not test positive until the next day which unfortunately is the day you land in Thailand for the next test.  

 

Traveling to countries that require test on arrival is a gamble.

5 hours ago, webfact said:

46-year old Bengt Augustsson and his 11-year-old daughter Isabelle had planned to travel to Koh Lipe and other southern islands of Thailand after their first night in Bangkok but those plans quickly changed when Bengt tested positive for covid-19 the morning after they arrived in the country.

Maybe next time he'll chose the destination and watch his health a little more wisely?

4 hours ago, Stocky said:

Holiday in a pandemic, what could possibly go wrong.

Some people just can't refrain doing it... 

4 hours ago, NicholasTH said:

Sum num na seems people left there brain at home.. ????‍♂️

Clearly yours is an impediment. 

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Most people know the risks and accept them before travelling

I'm not so sure about that, most people are woefully uneducated about foreign rules and regulations.

 

Just look at the problems people get themselves into with immigration issues - most have no clue, we've even had people on the elite visas overstaying and being banned.

Hardly anyone actually reads all of the smallprint.