Search Results for: Dr Opas Kankawinpong

  • Thailand NewsThailand amplifies universal healthcare scheme to aid impoverished urbanites

    Thailand amplifies universal healthcare scheme to aid impoverished urbanites

    Faced with the challenge of access to healthcare for underprivileged urban dwellers, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health announced its commitment to augment the universal healthcare scheme. The initiative, discussed at an academic conference in Udon Thani yesterday, aims to improve access and services for all, with particular attention to the impoverished populace in major cities. Dr Opas Kankawinpong, the ministry’s…

  • Northern Thailand NewsUmphang Hospital grapples with 40 million baht deficit due to Myanmar crisis

    Umphang Hospital grapples with 40 million baht deficit due to Myanmar crisis

    The Thai-Burmese frontier healthcare services face a financial crisis as a result of the current political turmoil in Myanmar. It has been reported that Umphang Hospital, situated in Thailand’s Tak province, has been hit by a considerable deficit of 40 million baht. The hospital has been forced to turn to the Ministry of Public Health for assistance. Umphang Hospital has…

  • Thailand NewsThai health ministry plans dental hospital in each province to boost care access

    Thai health ministry plans dental hospital in each province to boost care access

    In a bid to tackle the absence of adequate oral health facilities, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health has unveiled a plan to establish a dental hospital in each of the country’s 77 provinces. Dr Opas Kankawinpong, the ministry’s permanent secretary, underscored the urgent need for increased dental care coverage during a seminar, highlighting that with the current number of dentists,…

  • Thailand NewsBiting back: Thailand’s dengue battle claims 33 lives, Public Health Office reveals

    Biting back: Thailand’s dengue battle claims 33 lives, Public Health Office reveals

    The Public Health Office (PHO) announced 33 lives have been lost to dengue in Thailand. According to the PHO report, 27,377 cases of dengue have been documented in the country and 33 people have died resulting from dengue infection. An expert from the Khlong Yai District PHO in the eastern province of Trat, Panaporn Harnhiam, told Thairath yesterday that 97…

  • Thailand NewsInjuries increased by 81% during Songkran, road fatalities decreased

    Injuries increased by 81% during Songkran, road fatalities decreased

    Hospital admissions during the Songkran Festival spiked by 81% due to road accidents A significant 81% rise in hospital admissions has been reported due to an alarming 19% increase in the number of people injured in road accidents during the Songkran Festival, as stated by the Ministry of Public Health. The ministry’s permanent secretary, Dr Opas Kankawinpong, expressed his concern…

  • Covid-19 NewsThai health officials call for PCR on arrival to be replaced with antigen test

    Thai health officials call for PCR on arrival to be replaced with antigen test

    Thailand’s Department of Disease Control wants to see PCR tests for foreign arrivals replaced with antigen testing. DDC boss Dr Opas Kankawinpong says his department is submitting the proposal to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. “The department will have a meeting on Thursday to finalise the details of the proposal before presenting it to a CCSA meeting on Friday…

  • Covid-19 NewsOfficials say Thailand’s Covid-19 cases to peak in September

    Officials say Thailand’s Covid-19 cases to peak in September

    Thai officials announced Friday that the number of Covid-19 cases in the country is expected to start rising next week. The CCSA said that in September, the number is expected to hit a peak. The CCSA added, however, that if people follow the Public Health Ministry’s suggestions to avoid crowded spaces and public gatherings, daily infections will start dropping from…

  • Thailand video newsThailand News Today | Thailand or Cambodia? Comparing 10 year visa programmes

    Thailand News Today | Thailand or Cambodia? Comparing 10 year visa programmes

    Thai health authorities insist that the latest Covid wave in Thailand will be “small and controllable”, and should be called a “mini wave” not a new wave. Think – just the tip, not the full on thing. The Director-General of the DDC, Opas Kankawinpong, informed the media that the Omicron sub-variants BA.4, and BA.5, do transmit pretty quickly but do…

  • Thailand NewsThailand urges people to stop consuming bushmeat to help avoid monkeypox

    Thailand urges people to stop consuming bushmeat to help avoid monkeypox

    Thailand is urging people to avoid the consumption of bushmeat and the import of animals from unidentified countries after the recent small outbreaks of monkeypox. The Department of Disease Control has acknowledged the danger posed by monkeypox but insist no cases of the disease have been detected in Thailand. The Thai government instructed the Public Health Ministry to set up and…

  • Covid-19 NewsTravellers will still have to wear face masks post-endemic phase in Thailand

    Travellers will still have to wear face masks post-endemic phase in Thailand

    As the number of Covid-19 cases in Thailand continues to decrease, the National Communicable Diseases Committee has started talking about post-pandemic measures or lingering preventative measure when the coronavirus is declared endemic in Thailand, including any requirement for travellers to wear face masks, according to Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul. Speaking to Thai media yesterday, he claimed that, with public collaboration…

  • Thailand video newsThailand News Update | Thailand’s Covid-19 alert level has decreased

    Thailand News Update | Thailand’s Covid-19 alert level has decreased

    The Ministry of Public Health is bringing joy to everyone’s ears with their latest announcement that Thailand’s Covid-19 alert level has decreased from Level 4 to Level 3 nationwide. Whether Thailand is ready to declare Covid-19 as endemic will depend on vaccination rates, according to the ministry. Director-General of the Disease Control Department Opas Kankawinpong said Level 3 means Thai…

  • Thailand video newsThailand News Today | Political activist found dead in Isan Region in Thailand

    Thailand News Today | Political activist found dead in Isan Region in Thailand

    The Ministry of Public Health reports that Thailand will receive 2 hundred thousand Covovax vaccines from India today. Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, will be on call to receive the vaccine delivery personally. The Director-General of the Disease Control Department, Dr. Opas Kankawinpong says that the Covovax vaccines were donated by the QUAD, or the countries that agreed on Quadrilateral…

  • Thailand video newsThailand News Today | Suvarnabhumi Airport plays down Test & Go arrival “mess”

    Thailand News Today | Suvarnabhumi Airport plays down Test & Go arrival “mess”

    On Sunday, Thai YouTuber Atichan Cherngchavano complained about the airport management after finding crowds of travellers from the Test & Go program was left standing and confused in Suvarnabhumi airport. He said the situation was a mess, as the hotel staff had to shout out their guests’ names, while the travellers had to search for their hotel logos randomly “like…

  • Covid-19 NewsThailand’s DDC to reduce quarantine for high-risk cases from 7 days after Songkran

    Thailand’s DDC to reduce quarantine for high-risk cases from 7 days after Songkran

    Thailand’s Department of Disease Control, or DDC, has agreed to reduce the quarantine period for people residing in the kingdom who are at “high-risk” of infection after being in contact with confirmed cases of Covid-19. Starting after the Songkran festival, the quarantine period for high-risk people in Thailand will be reduced from 7 days to “5+5” days. This means those…

  • Thailand NewsThailand has the potential to eliminate malaria within the next 3 to 4 years – WHO

    Thailand has the potential to eliminate malaria within the next 3 to 4 years – WHO

    Thailand has the potential to eliminate malaria within the next 4 years, according to the World Health Organisation. WHO says Thailand is one of 8 countries that can potentially get rid of the mosquito-borne disease by 2025, a goal in line with the country’s strategic plan to eliminate the infectious disease by 2024. Malaria was a leading cause of death…

  • Thailand NewsSongkran holiday eerily quiet after Covid mutes celebrations

    Songkran holiday eerily quiet after Covid mutes celebrations

    Thailand rang in another Lunar New Year, or Songkran, without its normal festivities, highlighting the impact that the Covid pandemic has had on the world. For the 2nd year, the biggest Thai holiday was subdued without water-splashing, parties, and concerts. Instead, the predominantly Buddhist nation turned to its more muted, traditional activities of making merit to observe the 3 day…

  • Covid-19 News21 Thais test positive for Covid-19 after allegedly crossing the Thai-Myanmar border illegally

    21 Thais test positive for Covid-19 after allegedly crossing the Thai-Myanmar border illegally

    21 Thai returnees tested positive for Covid-19 after they were detained for allegedly crossing the Thai-Myanmar border illegally, fleeing from a Covid-19 outbreak at the Sky Complex Casino where they had worked. The returnees are now in quarantine at a Mae Sot district hospital. Around 300 Thais work at the casino in the neighbouring country’s Myawaddy town just across the…

  • Thailand News245 new cases, 181 locally transmitted-Covid update

    245 new cases, 181 locally transmitted-Covid update

    Thailand is reporting 245 new Covid-19 infections today, with 181 of those cases being locally-transmitted. Today’s news, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, brings the total amount of Covid-19 infections in Thailand to 10,298 since the start of the pandemic. The death toll has remained at 67, while 6,428 have fully recovered from the virus. Samut Sakhon was…

  • Thailand NewsPublic Health Ministry speculates new infections likely to slow by end of January

    Public Health Ministry speculates new infections likely to slow by end of January

    Thailand’s Public Health Ministry speculates that the 2nd wave of Covid-19 infections is likely to “slow down” by the end of this month. However, Dr. Opas Kankawinpong, the director-general of the Disease Control Department is warning that the virus could spread in office buildings and congested areas after such infections has been detected found in a few Bangkok offices. “We…