Patients need guidance

As Thailand encounters the fifth wave of Covid-19 infections, clear guidance for health workers and patients is needed to avoid communication problems that can put patients at risk and undermine the government’s Covid response. Dr Prasit Watanapa, dean of Mahidol University’s Faculty of Medicine, said the number of infections could surge to 20,000 to 30,000 by the end of this month.

He warned that even though Omicron does not cause severe symptoms, the variant is highly transmissible and when case numbers are high, the proportion of severe cases that require hospitalisation will also be high.

Signs of a healthcare system overload are emerging. Last week, news outlets reported the case of a 50-year-old woman crying by the roadside in Chon Buri province after she was rejected by a hospital.

The woman, who worked in Pattaya, said she tested Covid-19 positive through rapid ATK testing. She took a motorcycle taxi to Banglamung hospital in Naklua district, Pattaya, only to find the hospital refusing to treat her.

She had no idea where else to go since she did not want to go back home and possibly infect family members.

The report has raised questions about how such a situation could happen. Can a hospital refuse to treat patients?

Bang Lamung district chief Wuttisak Singhadecho said the hospital’s refusal stemmed from a limited number of beds.

The hospital has to classify patients based on the level of symptoms. Only a red, or severe case will be admitted.

The district chief said patients may test positive for Covid-19 but they may not need to go to hospital for treatment if they have mild or no symptoms. They can conduct home isolation and get a consultation from a doctor.

In the wake of surging cases due to the Omicron variant, the incident in Chon Buri should alert the government to the need to tackle communication problems.

The government must prescribe clear action plans and guidelines for health workers, patients and family members so everyone is on the same page.

The government must be sensitive enough to understand that people are not in the wrong if they want to be treated at a hospital when they learn that they are infected.

Although hospitals and health workers are entitled to refuse patients with mild symptoms, they must have guidelines on how to help the patients, not just turn them away and let them determine their own fate.

The guidance must cover the period of self-isolation, medical support, health monitoring and consultation as well as hospital admission if the symptoms worsen.

In addition, authorities must prepare field hospitals, several of which have been closed, as many patients lack a proper place to conduct self-isolation.

The government must learn its lessons from the middle of last year when the number of infected cases rose sharply and the government found it lacked facilities and systems to handle it.

Some patients died at home or even on street. Such a terrible situation must not be repeated.

Authorities can’t just turn patients away and leave them to determine their own fate.