Performance assessment of village health volunteers for health development in Thailand | |
| Author | Sukunya Plungsuchon |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.RD-11-10 |
| Subject(s) | Volunteer workers in community health--Evaluation--Thailand Community health aides--Thailand |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for degree of Master of Science in Regional and Rural Development Planning, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Thesis ; no. RD-11-10 |
| Abstract | The promotion of village health volunteers (VHVs) was launched in PHC of Thailand not until the fomth Public Health Development Plan (1977-1981) mainly due to the sh01tage of public health personnel at local level. VHVs are key grassroots resource persons for PHC to provide basic technical knowledge and practices on health care services to local people over decades. The research aims to study motivation and incentives of VHV s in performing community health development (CHD) activities; to assess their performance on tasks related to CHD activities; to assess satisfaction of local people on CHD services performed by VHVs and the satisfaction of VHVs on performance and institutional suppott; and to analyze factors explaining their performance. The research used both primary and secondary data sources applying household survey, reconnaissance survey, field observation, interviews and group discussion in field data collection. Samples were drawn both from VHVs and households from ten villages in Khlong Rua Sub-district, Wihan Daeng District of Saraburi Province in central Thailand. The research is primarily used quantitative analysis with the suppo1t of qualitative explanations. Several kinds of motivation were expressed by VHVs including personal and altruistic and public motivations. Their motivation was varied by social characteristics of them. Most of the VHVs performed well in tasks assigned by Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) pa1ticularly on curative care, health prevention, health promotion, and health rehabilitation activities such as examining the rights of using free medical card, prevention of dengue hemorrhagic fever, cooperation with VHV s network, and diabetes mellitus and paralys is chronic disease patient based on their own selfassessment. Local people were satisfied with VHV's services rendered to them on curative care, health prevention, health promotion, and health rehabilitation services such as blood test for malaria and providing essential medicine, examine the rights of using free medical card, avian influenza prevention and suggestion about oral and dental care, providing health dissemination and health knowledge about good nutrition and good sanitation, and taking care of elderly patient. Main influential factors for VHVs to perform well were due to primarily institutional suppo1t from MoPH including capacity building program for them and monetary incentive for monthly service cost as well as supply of medicine and medical equipment. Social factors were also contributed to their good performance including their motivation of voluntarily spirit, service-minded, good cooperation with local government (TAO) and suppott from local hospitals and local networking of VHVs with other local groups and cooperation from local people. Despite of strong support institutionally, financially and socially, the pe1formance of VHVs on the job is different in assessment because of variation of their social characteristics comprising gender, age, place of origin, social position, and years of working experiences. Due to good performance of them on the current tasks, it is considered that they could provide significant suppo1t on human resource for the newly established of Tambon Health Promoting Hospital as well as to assist local government (TAO) in preparing a local health development plan of the sub-district. This should be taken as policy implications in near future. Recommendations were given to enhance better VHVs' performance in CHD activities in specific tasks through intensifying capacity building program of MoPH. In addition, institutional supp01t for VHVs on medical supply and financial suppo1t should be continued to suppo1t their performance. Monetary incentive scheme for service cost of VHVs should be maintained to motivate them on the job. Lastly, VHVs network should be established to sharing working experience and best practices. |
| Year | 2011 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Thesis ; no. RD-11-10 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Rural Development, Gender and Resources (RD) |
| Chairperson(s) | Sopaith Pongquan |
| Examination Committee(s) | Routray, Jayant Kumar; Kusakabe, Kyoko |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Royal Thai Government;AIT Fellowship |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2011 |