[TNA] Interviews with Thailand’s COVID-19 Frontliners

By Siriporn Kitprakob

During the period when the coronavirus outbreak peaked and the central government of China imposed a lockdown in Wuhan, the original epicenter of the pandemic, the situation in Thailand also became alarming. The country reported the first case of COVID-19 and the super spreader phenomenon emerged, causing cluster infections in the boxing stadium and some entertainment venues. One of those tested positive for the coronavirus was a celebrity who was emceeing the boxing match. Since then the number of people infected with COVID-19 have continued to rise, causing panic among the population. People started hoarding face masks, hand sanitizers, as well as personal protective equipment (PPE). The panic buying and hoarding caused the shortage of medical supplies for medical and healthcare workers to use. I was assigned by my editor to make news reports providing the truth to create better understanding among the public on main topics including the evolutionary development of COVID-19, observation, prevention and treatment of the disease, as well as medical innovation. The first story that I want to tell you is about a rising concern among the people who had no confidence in the state sector’s handling of the coronavirus crisis. Having seen the news about China building two makeshift coronavirus hospitals in 12 days, Thai people became even more worried about Covid-19. They were wondering if the coronavirus pandemic escalated, there would be enough ventilators and ICU beds for patients. I went to Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, to interview Associate Professor Nitipat Jiarakul, Head of the Division of Respiratory Disease and Tuberculosis and President of Thoracic Society of Thailand who is in charge of planning and handling patients with severe illnesses. The doctor was so busy treating patients admitted to the ICU that he rarely had time to talk to the media. However, he was kind enough to come out to clarify details regarding ventilators used to treat patients with severe illnesses. He told me that over 1,500 highly-efficient ventilators were available in hospitals across the country. The number of ventilators was threefold larger than the number of ICU beds prepared for patients with severe COVID-19. “Don’t panic too much ! We are closely and continuously evaluating our health-system capacity. Out of the total number of COVID-19 cases in Thailand, only 1 percent or about 40 people are admitted to the ICU and only 20 cases that have been diagnosed as having severe lung infections and need ventilators. So, both ventilators and ICU beds that have been put in place are definitely enough”, the President of Thoracic Society of Thailand said. (2) Another story that I want to share is the dedication of nurses and healthcare workers who have been not much mentioned. I had an opportunity to get inside the ICU where critically ill patients were being treated. Each COVID-19 patient there needed 2- 3 nurses to care for them. The nurses on duty had to work much harder than usual. They were on the front lines of the battle against COVID-19. They were more at risk than others of becoming infected with the disease because they closely cared for patients 24 hours a day. They highly risked getting infected with the disease when performing clinical procedures on patients, such as conducting physical examination, putting on ventilators and suctioning, etc. Most of the COVID ICU nurses had no time to return home to meet their families. Even though time permitted, they chose not to go home because they feared that they might be carrying the coronavirus and would spread it to their family members, especially their kids and parents. “I have not returned home to see my kid for over a month now. I miss her so much. What I can do is just making a video call, chatting with her. I don’t want her to risk getting infected with the disease from me’, said one of the dedicated nurses. All the nurses who were the front line warriors in the war against COVID-19 told me that they were scared and exhausted but they were proud of having the opportunity to save patients’ lives. They wanted all people to survive together. Amid the shortage of protective equipment, especially N95 masks and PPEs, nurses are the largest group of medical personnel infected with COVID-19. In early April, 43 Thai nurses out of a total of 106 medical personnel nationwide were infected with COVID-19. The figure was in line with the report released by the International Council of Nurses on June 3 which indicated that more than 600 nurses worldwide have died from COVID-19, which has infected an estimated 450,000 health-care workers. The council’s figures are based on data from more than 30 countries. Besides medical personnel and healthcare workers, many people in some other sectors also work on the frontlines of Thailand’s COVID-19 battle. As for me, despite being a cog in the machine, I am proud of doing my job as a journalist trying to create awareness and better understanding among the public about COVID-19 so that they know how to protect themselves and their families from the deadly infectious disease. (END) Siriporn in ICU Siriporn Talking to Nurses Nurses on Duty Nurses on Duty