Thai Health Attaché in the Sustainable Development Era

Abstract

Most developed countries and a few developing countries established their Health Attachés to work at strategic locations to protect their national health benefits. Thailand, however, has not yet had a formal Health Attaché position due to the concern on cost-effectiveness and long term financial burden. The diplomats at the embassies or permanent missions who do not have formal training of public health and medicine, usually at the level of the first secretary, are undertaken the role of a Health Attaché together with their other responsibilities. With a changed context in the past two decades especially post 2015 towards the sustainable development, global health issues are increasingly complex and many more new global actors emerged in both state and non-state sectors. This requires more comprehensive and proactive roles. This article aimed to analyse and synthesize the policy issue on Health Attaché and stimulate the interests and commitments of policy makers to support an appointment of a formal, full time Health Attaché to play a proactive role in support of Thailand global health strategies and protecting the benefits of nation and the global community at large.