In Thailand, more than half of children who die from Covid-19 are under 5

In January, over half of the children who died in Thailand from Covid-19 were under 5 years old, and therefore too young to be vaccinated (under current Thai health guidelines).

Meanwhile, the number of deaths from Covid-19 continue to worry health officials following the Songkran holiday, according to a Chulalongkorn University lecturer. The lecturer, Dr. Thira Worathanarat, wrote in a Facebook post yesterday that Thailand recorded the eighth-highest number of Covid-19 deaths in the world for the 24 hour recording period.

Meanwhile, the Thai government continues to urge parents to get vaccinated, and is instructing public hospitals to launch a special treatment system for children infected after the school year starts. Hospitals have been ordered to arrange beds, medical personnel and a transfer system in case of any rapid rise in the number of severely ill children. The government is also rushing to vaccinate children five to 11 years old in schools.

On Friday, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha called on schools to follow the so-called ‘6-6-7’ safety measures for Covid-19. The first 6 measures of the plan include well known precautions such as social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands and temperature checks.

The next 6 measures include school check-in and check-out, surveys and examinations and self-quarantine.

The next 7 measures include strict practices such as doing activities in small groups, and preparing ‘sealed routes’ for students travelling to school. Schools must also constantly report to the Ministry of Education’s ‘MOE COVID’ app.

A government spokesperson said yesterday that the Omicron variant has caused the number of childhood Covid-19 infections to rise.

Some countries, such as Cambodia, have allowed children under 5 years old to be vaccinated. Other countries are vaccinating children under 5 include China, Bahrain, and Cuba. China and Bahrain started targeting kids between 3 and 11 years old last year, while Cuba started vaccinating children as young as 2.

Today, there area 17,784 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand, and 126 new deaths. Whilst the Covid-related deaths are still over 100 each day, and for the past 2 weeks, the number of daily new infections is trending downward.

SOURCE: Straights Times | Worldometers