Perceptions of primary health care managers in leading and managing primary health care reform in Thailand

Abstract

Primary health care (PHC) is crucial to the overall functioning of a health system. Like many developing countries, Thailand has adopted PHC principles in its national health policy. PHC managers are the largest management group in Thailand's healthcare system. They have leadership roles and management functions within the organization, among stakeholder organizations, and in the catchment community. Their roles and functions are currently changing as a result of the government "Sub-district Health Promoting Hospital Policy" (SHPH policy), implemented in 2009, to upgrade 9,769 Primary Care Units (PCUs) at the sub-district level to Sub-district Health Promoting Hospitals (SHPHs) with an emphasis on health promotion. Since the 2009 SHPH policy reforms, studies have been conducted in an attempt to evaluate the success and challenges of implementing the policy and to identify the competencies of health professionals working at the SHPHs. Most of these studies were conducted based on the quantitative approach and there is no study that has empirically examined the perceptions of PHC managers regarding the important leadership roles and management functions that are necessary for them to work effectively during the transition period of the implementation of the SHPH policy. Therefore, the aim of this qualitative study is to explore the leadership roles, management functions, challenges and training needs of PHC managers working at SHPHs and implementing SHPH policy in Phitsanulok Province, Thailand.