The Public Health Ministry on Monday instructed managements of hospitals that cater for foreign patients not to accept people wanting to come from overseas for medical treatment unless they first test negative for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers).
Dr Wachira Pengjuntr, deputy permanent secretary for health, said the instruction was given at a meeting with representatives of private hospitals and clinics on Monday.
They were told to ensure their foreign clients undergo tests for Mers infection before coming to Thailand. Those who test positive must not be accepted for treatment in Thailand.
Staff must also instruct any foreign clients already in Thailand not to use public transport to get to their premises, he said.
More Mers patients may still be found in Thailand because visitors were arriving from risk countries in the Middle East and South Korea for medical treatment and on vacation, he said. So strict measures were necessary.
Thailand's first, and to date only, Mers case was recovering at the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute in Nonthaburi province, Dr Wachira said. The 75-year-old Omani man was now able to eat unassisted and did not have a high temperature.
His three relatives who travelled with him remained in normal health and laboratory tests found they had no infection. All of them were treated in isolation, Dr Wachira said.
From Jan 1 to June 21 this year, 53 Thai people had returned from South Korea (32) and the Middle East (21), and their tests proved negative for Mers.
As of Sunday, there was one Mers patient, the Omani, in Thailand and 163 people who had come in contact with the disease.
As of last Friday, there were 1,338 Mers patients worldwide and 475 of them died. In South Korea there were 169 patients, 25 of whom died, according to the Public Health Ministry.
People are advised to stay away from those with respiratory infections, to eat hot food, use serving spoons and wash their hands frequently with soap.
Respiratory patients must cover their mouths and noses, stay away from others, wash their hands and seek medical treatment.
