“I want to clarify that the person came to get vaccinated from 1pm-2:30pm. The person spent one and half hours at the stadium… Then the person was tested and confirmed positive,” Vachira Phuket Hospital Director Dr Chalermpong Sukontapol said in a video posted online at 7:28pm last night (Apr 7).
Dr Chalermpong gave no description of the person or his or her recent movements. He did not confirm whether the infected person was one of the eight new cases recognised by local officials yesterday, and gave no explanation of why the warning came six days after the person was at the stadium.
“At the stadium, the infected person wore a face mask all the time, and everyone – medical staff and people who come to get vaccinated— also wore face masks all the time, as is normal. We always remind people to wear a mask,” Dr Chalermpong said.
“It is globally acknowledged that if everyone wears face masks, even though there is still a risk, there is only a very low probability for people to be infected, which we call ‘no risk’ [sic],” he added.
“So those who came to be vaccinated at the stadium from 1pm-2:30pm on Apr 2, please self-quarantine, monitor yourselves and keep away from relatives. If you can stay home, please do it for seven days. Try not to go outside,” he said.
“If you have a fever, coughing, sore throat, running nose, unable to smell and taste, please go to the nearest hospital for a swab test so you know whether you are infected or not,” Dr Chalermpong said.
“I am sure that if every person wears a face mask, you all have very low potential to be infected,” he said.
Dr Chalermpong’s “request” came before a notice issued by Bang Neow Municipal School was posted online at 9:05pm last night, confirming that a parent of one of the students had tested positive for COVID-19.
Both the school and Dr Chalermpong gave no indication whether or not the infected parent was the infected person who was at the indoor stadium at Saphan Hin last Friday.
The notice also came four days after the school closed last Saturday (Apr 3).
“The school already finished the semester on Apr 3, but we are worried about the health safety of teachers, students and parents, so we will take action as follows,” the school said in its announcement.
“For medical issues, we have contacted public health staff from Vachira Phuket Hospital and Phuket City Municipality to conduct tests on high risk teachers, students and parents,” the notice added.
No other information about the infected parent was provided.
Foot | 08 April 2021 - 20:12:41