BANGKOK, Oct. 12 -- Thai officials have found a nursing home where residents could be confined under metal bars fitted over their beds, in a scandal that is shining a light on how South-east Asia cares for its fast-growing older population.

Sothornchai Nursing Home in Kanchanaburi, western Thailand, came under scrutiny after a 63-year-old woman told a television programme she was held there for more than two years against her will, according to local and regional media reports.

Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat instructed the Department of Health Service Support (DHSS) to take immediate legal action if violations were found, the department said on its official Facebook page on October 6.

DHSS director-general Dr Phuwadet Surakot,...