Thailand Journal of Health Promotion and Environmental Health

Effectiveness of oral health literacy program among parents of early childhood in child development center, Rongkwang District, Phrae Province

2024-10-08T15:29:10+07:00

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of oral health literacy programs, regarding oral
health literacy among parents and dental plaque in children. The quasi-experimental study with 2
groups pretest-posttest design among parents and early childhood in child development centers of the
local administrative organization, Rong Kwang District, Phrae Province. The samples were drawn to
be classified as experimental and control groups, each consisting of 30 parents. The experimental
group received an oral health literacy program in 6 weeks with six skills, including access skill, cognitive skill, communication skill, decision-making skill, self-management skill, and media literacy skill, while the control group received the routine activity. The research instrument included an oral health literacy program, an oral health literacy questionnaire, and a dental plaque case record form. Data were analyzed using Multivariable Gaussian regression. The study found that the experimental group had oral health literacy score of 2.80 points more than the control group (p=0.001), and had children’s dental plaque score of 8.71 points less than the control group (p<0.001). The oral health literacy program could effectively increase oral health literacy, and reduce dental plaque

Model development for building the capacity of child caregivers for children from birth to 2 years old in early childhood development centers in Thailand

2025-02-27T09:24:36+07:00

Early childhood development is the foundation that influences the quality and efficiency of individuals throughout their lives. Under current social conditions, parents need to rely on early childhood development centers to take care of their children. Therefore, improving the quality of early childhood development centers and their personnel is an urgent necessity, both from the perspective of human quality development and the development of educational models. Child caregivers therefore play an important role and should be empowered to provide care for early childhood children, especially those aged from birth to 2 years. This study aimed to develop a model for building the capacity of child caregivers for children from birth to 2 years old in early childhood development centers in Thailand. The sample group consisted of child caregivers for children from birth to 2 years old in early childhood development centers, each with at least 1 year of experience. The research and development process was divided into three phases: Phase 1 involved a review of existing knowledge combined with qualitative research; Phase 2 focused on developing, implementing, and evaluating the effectiveness and satisfaction with the developed model through a quasi-experimental study using a pretest-posttest design with a non-equivalent control group; and Phase 3 entailed improving the model to ensure suitability through qualitative data collection between September to December 2024. The results of the development led to a model for capacity building of caregivers for children from birth to 2 years old, comprising system-level drivers and support mechanisms. This was achieved through health promotion centers and collaboration with network partners, guided by WHO’s health system development framework (Six Building Blocks). The model included: 1) Capacity building for trainers in collaboration with local educational networks; 2) Strengthening the capacity of caregivers for children from birth to 2 years old through a 6-module curriculum, including the development of e-learning courses in the form of Massive Open Online Courses; and 3) Support systems for implementation through the PIRAB strategy, adapted to local contexts, and a national database system for monitoring and evaluation. The results of the study found that caregivers who received capacity building in the developed format had significantly higher knowledge and practical skills compared to the control group who did not receive capacity building. Moreover, the sample group reported a good level of satisfaction. The health and development outcomes of the children under their care met the standard criteria and were higher than the overall average of Thai early childhood children. The development model can be used as policy proposals for health centers and health districts to implement and drive according to the local context

Developing a Nutrition System for Early Childhood to Achieve Global Nutrition Targets

2024-09-18T13:53:11+07:00

The Department of Health is Thailand’s primary agency responsible for sustainable nutrition development, focusing on accelerating efforts to address early childhood malnutrition. This policy research aimed to develop policy recommendations for improving the early childhood nutrition system to achieve global nutrition targets. The objectives are to analyze nutritional status in accordance with global nutrition targets, examine the current early childhood nutrition system, and develop practical policy recommendations. The research was conducted in 3 phases. Phase 1 involved problem identification and data analysis, examining nutritional status against Global Nutrition Targets through eight national surveys and in-depth interviews with 24 stakeholders, along with reviewing three years of Department of Health annual reports (2020-2022). Phase 2 analyzed gaps, challenges, and opportunities. Phase 3 developed policy recommendations by reviewing 45 papers and conducting in-depth interviews with six Department of Health executives and nutrition experts. The research found that Thailand has not yet achieved its Global Nutrition Targets, with some pregnant women and young children continuing to engage in unhealthy eating patterns. The review of the early childhood nutrition system identified several system weaknesses, including a lack of strong national strategy and policy implementation, ineffective policy implementation at the local level, inadequate monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, research that does not addressing actual problems, surveillance system issues with equipment and staff skills, and ineffective nutrition education approaches in health services. Seven key policy recommendations were developed 1) strengthen policy implementation efficiency 2) develop mechanisms for implementing plans 3) enhance local partnership networks 4) reinforce child health protection laws 5) improve maternal and child health services focusing on nutrition literacy 6) improve surveillance systems and research and 7) modernize personnel development approaches. These policy recommendations will be crucial in guiding the Department of Health’s operations to address early childhood malnutrition in Thailand and achieve Global Nutrition Targets

A Study of Environmental Health Literacy for Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Prevention among Village Health Volunteers: A Case Study of Eco Industrial Town

2024-11-25T15:30:49+07:00

This study aimed to: 1) examine environmental health literacy of village health volunteers in Eco Industrial Town regarding the prevention of health effects from fine particulate matter (PM_2.5); 2) differentiate environmental health literacy among village health volunteers based on their sociodemographic factors; and 3) investigate the influence of environmental health literacy on preventive behaviors related to fine particulate matter. The study was conducted among 266 village health volunteers in 15 provinces of Eco Industrial Town, selected using multi-stage random sampling. Data were collected using a questionnaire with a reliability from 0.80 to 0.95. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analysis. Of the sample group, 90.2% were female, 59.8% were married, and 55% had less than 13 years of experience as village health volunteers. 55.6% were under 60 years old, 53% had lived in the community for more than 40 years, 53.8% had completed primary school as their highest level of education, and 40.2% were not housewives/househusbands. The results showed that overall environmental health literacy among village health volunteers was at a moderate level, with an average score of 3.34. The dimensions of environmental health literacy accessing, understanding, verifying and decision-making were also at a moderate level, with average scores of 3.30, 3.23, 3.38 and 3.46, respectively. When comparing the average environmental health literacy scores with sociodemographic factors, the study found statistically significant differences in
environmental health literacy among village health volunteers with varying levels of experience as a health village volunteer, age and education at the 0.01 and 0.05 levels (p-value = 0.024, 0.001, 0.008 respectively). The study also found that understanding environmental health information directly influenced verifying that information. Furthermore, decisions made to protect health directly influenced behaviors related to monitoring self and the community health regarding fine particulate matter. Finally, monitoring self and the community health directly influenced behaviors to prevent exposure to fine particulate matter. These relationships were statistically significant at the 0.05 level, with large effect sizes of 0.94, 0.94, and 0.84, respectively. These findings demonstrate that the components of environmental health literacy are key factors that strongly influence health surveillance behaviors in individuals and communities, and consequently affect behaviors related to preventing exposure to fine particulate matter. Based on these findings, it is recommended that targeted development programs be implemented for village health volunteers in Eco Industrial Town to enhance their environmental health literacy regarding the prevention of health impacts from fine particulate matter. These programs should aim to develop specific skill and competency related to understanding environmental health information, making decisions about health prevention, and monitoring health risks in their communities. In conclusion, further experimental studies are recommended to evaluate the effectiveness of these training programs in changing behaviors and preventing health problems related to fine particulate matter

The development of guidelines for implementation of intermediate care in Special Areas: A Case Study of Phrunai Sub-district Health Promotion Hospital, Phang Nga Province

2024-12-06T09:58:20+07:00

This participatory action research aims to study the situation of home care visits for intermediate care patients and to develop effective home visit guidelines that comply with standards and the community context. The research will be conducted from October 2023 to October 2024, with a sample size of 40 participants selected purposefully. This group includes staff working at Phrunai Sub-District Health Promotion Hospital, network partners (local administrative organizations, community leaders, caregivers), and patient caregivers. Data will be collected using semi-structured interviews that have been validated for content by three experts. Quantitative data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data will be analyzed through content analysis. The research findings reveal that: 1) The situation of home care visits for intermediate care patients faces limitations regarding personnel numbers, medical equipment, caregiver capabilities, and coordination between agencies, as well as a lack of systematic operational guidelines and clear evaluation methods appropriate to the local context. 2) The development of effective home visit guidelines resulted in (1) the establishment of home visit guidelines in special areas through the participation of a multidisciplinary team and network partners, including community leaders, religious leaders, caregivers, and patient caregivers; (2) clear practices for developing the home visit process before, during, and after visits (3) standardized patient assessment tools and (4) comprehensive innovations used in patient care. The research suggests applying the developed guidelines and innovations to care for patients across all disease groups, as well as conducting in-depth studies on the outcomes of spiritual care for patients by integrating Islamic principles

Development of an action plan for promoting quality childbearing to enhance population and human capital

2025-02-27T10:23:04+07:00

The research on development of an action plan for promoting quality childbearing to enhance population and human capital aims to examine data and the current situation regarding birth rates, as well as recommendations from stakeholders involved in promoting childbearing. The objective is to develop a draft action plan for promoting childbearing and to assess the opinions and participation of stakeholders in the process of drafting the action plan. A qualitative study was conducted using secondary data from in-depth interview records. The sample group consists of 7 experts from government agencies, private sectors, and academic organizations, as well as reports and audio recordings from participatory workshops with involving representatives from 45 partner organizations. Additionally, quantitative data were collected using questionnaires on opinions and participation in the drafting of the action plan from the entire sample group. The results of the study on the country’s birth situation show a continuous decline in the number of newborns. In 2022, the total fertility rate dropped to just 1.08. Key factors affecting fertility levels include marriage, the average age of childbirth, infertility, same-sex partnerships, women’s roles in the economy and family, and public attitudes toward family formation and having children. The action plan for promoting childbirth was analyzed using the SWOT method, revealing that the current strategic position of the country’s promotion of childbirth is at a strategic disadvantage, as weaknesses and threats outweigh strengths and opportunities. Therefore, to shift the strategic position to a more advantageous one, a workshop was held to draft the action plan, during which strategic issues and key measures were determined, turning obstacles into opportunities by applying the philosophy of sufficiency economy and the “Blue Ocean Strategy.” This enabled a shift from a “defensive” position, characterized by more weaknesses than strengths and more threats than opportunities, to an “offensive” position with a strategic advantage. The draft action plan consists of three key measures: 1) Adjusting the environment to support having and raising children; 2) Enhancing knowledge and changing attitudes; and 3) Providing comprehensive, high-quality care and support for those deciding to have children. Conclusion: The development of an action plan to promote quality childbearing and enhance population and human capital involved gathering secondary data and workshop reports. This data was utilized to draft an action plan comprising three key measures. The process also included monitoring, evaluating feedback, and fostering participation from partner networks. The majority of partner organizations participating in the workshops expressed agreement with the measures outlined in the action plan and demonstrated a high level of engagement in its development process. The research recommendations: 1) Establishing a national steering committee to provide directives, oversee operations, and monitor implementation processes. 2) Building collaborative networks with partner organizations at all levels, including both public and private sectors, to drive operations forward. 3) Encouraging local-level partner organizations to collaboratively plan and develop integrated projects to secure funding support from various local funding sources

The strategies to support lifestyle modifications for achieving diabetes remission

2025-02-26T14:55:01+07:00

Diabetes, one of the most prevalent health problems with increasing mortality rates worldwide, particularly in middle- to high-income countries. In Thailand, in 2020, the prevalence of diabetes was 9.5%, with 300,000 new cases annually. Complications from diabetes, such as cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and chronic wounds, impact patients’ health and quality of life. Furthermore, it imposes a significant economic burden due to high treatment and complication management costs. In Thailand, the current process of promoting lifestyle changes still lacks integration of the six pillars of Lifestyle Medicine in a concrete manner, affecting the rate of diabetes remission. Unhealthy lifestyle and improper diet are the primary causes of type 2 diabetes. It has been found that behavioral changes, such as dietary control, exercise, and weight loss, can lead to diabetes remission, a condition where patients can maintain normal blood sugar levels for at least 3-6 months without medication. Lifestyle Medicine is a recognized discipline that effectively promotes behavior change to control diabetes remission. Integrating Lifestyle Medicine with the care provided by medical teams and other specialists helps patients achieve sustained diabetes remission, reducing economic burdens and long-term health impacts. This article was developed from a review of 26 medical literatures and reports from a meeting to create visions and development plans for the management and support system for Lifestyle Medicine services. Twenty experts in Lifestyle Medicine and primary care for diabetic patients were involved using the Delphi technique to propose strategies supporting lifestyle changes for diabetes remission. These strategies include developing Lifestyle Medicine facilities for behavior modification, developing Lifestyle Medicine personnel, advancing research, innovation, and technology, and creating ecosystems that promote healthy lifestyles and support diabetes remission