NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: Health authorities will speed up Covid-19 vaccinations to vulnerable groups for the safety of people during the upcoming Songkran festival.
Nakhon Si Thammarat deputy governor Trairat Chairat chaired a meeting with the provincial communicable disease committee on Wednesday to follow up on the Covid-19 outbreak in areas where the number of infections soared.
In February, the province recorded the lowest number of infections at 95 and the highest at 2,832. An average of 1,900 people tested positive a day after taking RT-PCR and antigen tests over the past week.
The number of infections was expected to reduce in April and May, according to the committee.
So far, 1,208,539 people, or 79.30% in the province, have received a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine; 1,126,943 people, or 72.73%, have received a second dose, and 324,745 people, or 20.96%, have had a booster shot.
Health workers had been speeding up the vaccination drive for elderly people in at-risk groups and those with underlying health conditions in a bid to boost their safety during the Songkran festival, said the deputy governor.
In Muang district, some 300 people tested positive for Covid-19 a day. The number of infected people in home isolation stood at 2,198. Nurses were sent to monitor their conditions and relief items were distributed to their homes.
People in the at-risk groups and children aged below 15 who developed a high fever, fatigue and hyperpnea are advised to alert officials at hotline 199. Vehicles would be sent to pick them up to hospitals.
Those who had no severe symptoms could contact authorities to receive treatment at community isolation (CI) centres. In Muang district, the IC centre at Thung Tha Lard meeting hall had 300 beds. Now, 69 beds were occupied.
The southern province reported five new Covid-19 deaths and 1,231 new infections in all 23 districts on Wednesday, with Muang district logging the highest cases at 418. The deaths were aged 70, 45, 26, 38 and 65. Most had underlying health conditions and received at least two doses of vaccine, said the panel.
Since January, Nakhon Si Thammarat reported 28,285 coronavirus infections and 32 fatalities.