A Covid-19 patient reads an Islamic scripture alone during his home isolation.

The Strength within

To fight Covid-19 which has flooded the community, Ban Khrua Nuea community located at the heart of the capital has drawn all of its strengths_from social bonds, to community knowledge, to the religious faith_ to heal the sick and the residents

The call to prayer has broken silence in Ban Khrua Nuea community located at the heart of Bangkok for the third time of the day. The sound is familiar as always to residents in this community, as it regularly helps alert them to prepare themselves for their prayer ritual, but these days the residents know the overall atmosphere in their community is a bit irregular.

Shortly after the prayer, 39-year-old grocery shop owner Safee-a Si-on changes her cloth, wear a PPE, a facemask, and a face shield, and is then ready to leave her shop for her neighbours. It’s become another routine for Safee-a, who will then venture out along alleys to visit her neighbours who have got sick because of Covid-19.

Since the community was hit by Covid-19 along with a number of communities in the capital in the third wave in April, more and more of Ms. Safeeah’s Covid-19 infected neighbours have to stay at home to treat themselves because medical facilities are not available. Ms. Safee-a and several of her neighbours who remain healthy have drawn all strengths within their community to deal with the situation_from social bonds to community knowledge on herbal remedies to the religion. The practice has become their routine; helping their neighbours from Covid-19 with all of their strengths.

Ms. Safee-a and her fellow volunteers go visit Covid-19 infected neighbours and deliver food and medicines to them so that they can carry on their home isolation. But as the houses are quite small and cramped, sometimes the patients are under stress.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
In some small and cramped rooms, Ms. Safee-a observes that the patients stay under hot and humid air and their Oxygen levels tend to drop and she needs to specially care for them.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Although they are only volunteers, they are neighbours of the patients who have known each other for a long time. The volunteers’ assistance helps the patients a lot in terms of physical and mental support during this Covid-19 outbreak.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad

Besides getting training from the volunteer group called Zendai to help treat Covid-19 patients in the community, Ms. Safee-a has also tried applying community knowledge on herbal remedies passed on in her community to treat the patients. More importantly, people’s minds also need care during this difficult time, she said, and that’s where the religion comes in.

Ms. Safee-a said all these_started from her neighbours next door.

“The whole family of my neighbours was all infected with Covid-19,” Ms. Safee-a said. “Under this circumstance, it would be impossible for them to isolate themselves as any one of them have to go out to get food or medicines for other family members. They need help and without it, they would have no choice but to venture out and possibly spread the virus further. So, I invited some youngsters to be the volunteers for this mission.

“If they survive, we survive too. More importantly, they are our neighbours whom we have known for a long time; people who join us in the prayer ritual, meet at the same mosque and pray on the same scripture,” said Ms. Safee-a.

When needed, Ms. Safee-a and her young volunteers will go visit their Covid-19 patients at home. They will discuss with them daily arrangements before delivering what needed to them as discussed. Aside from delivering food and medicines, Ms. Safee-a also performs initial health checks for her neighbours such as checking their Oxygen levels with Oxygen monitoring devices.

The volunteers like her also help take care of Oxygen cylinders of the community and other medical devices to ensure that they will be of optimum use. Her healthy neighbours, meanwhile, come together at a makeshift cantine they set up to help prepare food for the patients.

And if medical supplies are really not enough, Ms. Safeeah will then get herbal remedies out of her community’s knowledge to support the patients. From ginger drinks to aromatic streams from cooked lemongrass mixing with kaffir lime leaves and other herbs, the patients will get the herbal remedy supportive to their complicated respiratory systems.

Apart from health, the patients’ states of mind are also important, said Ms. Safee-a.

“Covid-19 is a strange disease,” said Ms. Safee-a. “Not only it makes people sick, but the disease also keeps people apart, prompting them to plunge into loneliness. The patients have to isolate themselves. While some try to keep themselves in a small room, others try to keep themselves away from their family members when there is no room aviable_all these are to keep their family members safe, but they have to be away and alone.

“When I visit them, I help them get connected to their loved ones via mobile phones. Those having phones would chat and pray with others via social applications like Line. Other patients, meanwhile, read the prayer books.

“All these prompt me to think that we cannot get through this disease alone. We have to support one another with all strengths we have. And it’s the faith that we have that will help us get through this crisis together,” said Ms. Safee-a.

Ban Khrua Nuea Community is an aged old Muslim community located at the heart of the capital. It is estimated that around 3,000 residents of 800 households living there. Considering the population density in the community, it’s relatively hard for disease control.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Residents place some disease control measures in their community. Some alleys are blocked to cut down the spread of the virus in the community.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
As an aged old community, Ban Khrua Nuea’s setting is complex with narrow alleys sneaking through a number of houses that are built next to one another.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
The residents try to promote disease control measures in the community as best they can, including via painting warning signs on bridges and sidewalks clearly visible to passers-by.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Plastic sheets are common protective gears against the spread of the disease when distance is not possible in communities that are relatively cramped like Ban Khrua Nuea.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
50-year-old Sumalee Vijittrakarnsom was once a Covid-19 patient in the community. Aside from medical supplies, Ms. Sumalee also took herbal remedies and drinks along during her home isolation. While she was sick, Ms. Sumalee also performed Islamic religious rites, including a daily prayer although she had to perform it by herself in a small room at home. The drinks that were spelt with the prayer helped boost Ms. Sumalee’s morale and her faith in the religion helped keep her spirit high until she got through it. After recovering, Ms. Sumalee has volunteered to help others with the religious faith via social applications including Line and Facebook. She can get in touch with Muslims in other communities in the city.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Ban Khrua Nuea residents help one another set up a makeshift cantine to prepare food for Covid-19 patients and the jobless. They sometimes also receive donations from communities nearby.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
The young volunteers are proved to have made communal contribution a lot by helping deliver food and medicines to Covid-19 patients in the community. They have also learned that they can contribute and do more for their community.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Besides the residents, there are also some migrant workers in the community and they also get help from the residents.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
The young volunteers are willing to help Ms. Safee-a without taking any payment.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad
Besides taking care of the patients’ health, Ms. Safee-a also pays attention to their state of mind. If she can, she will make a video call to their relatives to help them get connected to reduce the distance between them.
Photo: Sayan Chuenudomsavad