This is not the type of subject I would normally discuss on the Forum, but I feel there are some tangible risks at the moment of picking up a strong flu virus in Thailand and I think people who are living here, or who might be traveling here for photography, should take some precaution.
I want to start out by saying that usually I don't take these "pandemics" too seriously. Normally I find them to be a lot of media hype with limited risk of anything serious actually happening to anyone. SARS, the bird flu and everything else that came in waves over the last couple of years in Asia are mainly what I am referring to.
Many people took serious precautions during those times and there were periods when you saw people everywhere throughout Asia wearing masks to try to protect themselves from catching an airborne virus. People were also being screened for abnormal body temperature at the airports and dispensers containing free antiseptic hand cleansers were seen everywhere imaginable. At the moment it is the opposite I am afraid. For some reason the media is no longer paying much attention to the whole H1N1 flu issue in Asia, but for once the threat actually seems very real to me. For one thing, I never knew anyone personally to be affected by any of those other publicized illnesses before, but, within just the last week, 2 people I know personally have already been diagnosed with H1N1.
I consider that to be a lot since there are probably literally thousands of cases of people who I don't know who have it as well. And the reports from other people from just casual conversations on the subject is that many people in Thailand, including foreigners, are getting the flu and are really worried about the dangers of it for a change. As evidence of it being taken more seriously now, a number of hospitals are out of stock on flu vaccines at the moment, which might also suggest that more people are trying to take preventive measures at present.
I have personally never had a flu vaccine in my life, nor have I ever thought of getting one, but I made it a point to get one today. Why? Well, part of the reason is that one of the 2 friends who was diagnosed with H1N1 last week is a person who doesn't drink or smoke, exercises regularly and is in very good general health. He is not a young child or an elderly person either who is in the higher risk category, but he was hospitalized for 5 days when he fell ill with the H1N1 virus. While in the hospital he needed to be packed in ice to try and bring his body temperature down and he lost 8 kilos of body weight during that time. The doctors were x-raying his chest 3 times per day for the first couple of days just to make sure his lungs did not start to flood with fluid or things could have become much more serious, possibly leading to pneumonia or even becoming fatal.
Another reason I decided to get vaccinated is that living in a city like Bangkok, with a large urban population, people are often in very close physical contact with one another when moving around in public places. People working in offices or shopping malls with lots of re-circulated air are of course at greater risk than I am I believe, but even traveling on the sky train, the underground train, walking around at the weekend market, or going to a fitness center puts all of us at risk.
Some people have mixed views on getting vaccinated. Some don't feel the risk is serious enough, some are worried about the potential side effects of getting a flu shot, some don't want to spend the money, and some people just won't do it on principle. But considering there is a high possibility of falling seriously ill from it, and possibly even being hospitalized for a week, was enough for me to take the plunge.
I called a few places, and, as I said, some were out of stock on the vaccine already. The lowest cost place to get vaccines in Thailand in general (and has always been) is the Thai Red Cross on Rama 4 Road opposite to the Rama 4 / Suriwongse Road intersection (
http://english.redcross.or.th/home). They charge 400 Baht for the H1N1 vaccine, but said they are out of stock on it unfortunately until early next month when another shipment from overseas is expected to arrive. I finally found a small private hospital that had stock of the vaccine and so I went there today. The cost, including the doctor's consultation and the nursing fee for the injection, was a total of 800 Baht (about US$25). The doctor told me they won't give the vaccine to someone who is already ill with a fever or has a respiratory infection since the immune system is already weak. So they took my temperature, looked down my throat, and listened to my lungs just to be sure.
The vaccine I was given covers the 3 main strains of the H1N1 flu viruses going around right now, which he referred to as Type A, Type B and a 3rd Type referred to as the "2009 flu" or the "swine flu". The doctor said I might feel a bit weak/ill, and possibly even have a light fever over the next couple of days from the vaccine, but he said many people also are reported to have no side effects from the vaccine at all.
I feel it is worth the risk of the minor side affects though considering the dangers involved if I were actually to fall ill from a serious strain of this flu. The doctor also said that the flu vaccine does not prevent one from possibly picking up a cold or fever bug over the next 12 months, but that one should not become seriously ill or be hospitalized from a flu virus after being vaccinated, which is what is most important. The vaccine I was injected with was manufactured by Abbot Laboratories in the Netherlands and it said it was for the 2010/2011 flu virus on the packaging.
If you are planning to come to Bangkok in the near future, then I would strongly suggest considering getting an H1N1 flu shot either before coming or while you are here. If you live here already then of course my suggestion applies to you equally as well. You can contact the Thai Red Cross at 02-252-0161 if you like or one of the government or private hospitals instead if you prefer. I know for a fact that Bangkok Christian Hospital on Silom Road is also out of stock on the vaccine at the moment.
Please be careful and I think the risk of catching a dangerous flu is worth taking seriously at the moment even though the media around Asia is not providing much coverage on the various H1N1 flu virus strains which are actively spreading right now.
Best wishes to all...
May 23, 2012, 03:21:59 AM
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