Abstract
This was a descriptive research study, the purposes of which were to study the nature of participation of village health volunteers (VHVs) in all the community primary
health care center (CPHCC) activities and to investigate the relationships between the
supporting factors and the participation of VHVs in Ban Maung district of Sakhon Nakhon
Province.
The samples comprised 104 VHVs who were selected by the multistage random
sampling method. The subjects were interviewed, using the following instruments for
gathering data: 1) the general characteristics of VHVs, 2) supporting factors, and 3) the
participation of VHVs. Reliability of the supporting factors and the participation of VHVs
were tested by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient; reliability was 0.92 for supporting factors,
and 0.78 for the participation of VHVs. The statistical procedures employed were frequency distribution and percentage; the data were analyzed using descriptive statistics,
while the relationship between the independent and dependent variables was carried out
using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient. Then t-test was done to test for
statistical significance. The open-ended and independent questionnaires were analyzed
by content analysis.
The findings were as follows:
On average, the VHVs participated moderately in CPHCC activities. In terms of
assessment of needs and planning, the VHVs participated in the meeting and were more
likely to comply with the policy and planning. Participation in implementation, organization and resource mobilization. The VHVs were most likely to participate in the following
activities: nutritional surveillance, disease preventation, immunization, maternal and child
health promotion, and family planning. However, they were less likely to participate in
health promotion activities. The VHVs and their families tended to claim the right to free
treatment and medication. Participation in evaluation. Most of the VHVs shared their experiences in problem-solving to improve their work. This study was supported by public
health officials, and villagers; support facilitating the activities was highly correlated
with the participation of VHVs (r = 0.597,0.309 and 0.338 p < 0.01)
The findings of this study led to the recommendation that public heath officials
should set forth a plan to educate the villagers and VHVs to understand fully the concepts that underline the establishment of CPHCC, revolving funds and mobilizing resources, including the management of the organization. In-service training should also
be promoted and incentives should be provided. In addition, the area of evaluation should
be considered to enable the VHVs to properly implement their activities.
