Abstract
Abstract
Thailand’s rapid economic growth has brought health challenges as well as benefits, namely a rise
in life expectancy to 6.5 years above the global average, and an ‘epidemiological transition’ from
infectious and deficiency diseases, to chronic non-communicable diseases such as diabetes.
Previous research in Northeast and South Thailand by the Wellbeing in Developing Countries
ESRC Research Group demonstrates the importance of health to people’s subjective quality of life
and wellbeing, and suggests that ill health is a significant problem - nearly a fifth of households in
WeD sites experienced severe health-related ‘shocks’ during the past five years, and a third of
household heads defined themselves as chronically ill.
In 2001 the Government of Thailand introduced the Universal Health Coverage scheme to offer
near-universal health care coverage. However, while this has reduced ‘out of pocket’ expenditures
for healthcare and impoverishment through ‘catastrophic expenditures’, the perceived quality of its
services mean it is in danger of becoming little more than a safety net and failing to ameliorate
existing inequalities. This proposition is explored using the results of large-scale qualitative health
study carried out by WeD with 245 men and women from different age groups and socio-economic
statuses in Northeast and South Thailand, supplemented by WeD household survey data.
The paper is divided into three parts; the first briefly introduces Thailand and the WeD sites, and
describes the sampling and methodology. It also reviews current discourses about health and
health issues in Thailand, and outlines the context to health and health services. The second
presents data from the qualitative health research covering health risks, and the incidence and
impacts of chronic illness and disability. The final section looks at the health seeking behaviour of
people in the WeD sites (illustrated with case studies), focusing particularly on use of the UHC and
traditional medicine.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Quality of life and the Millennium challenge: advances in quality-of-life studies, theory and research |
Editors | Valerie Moller, Denis Huschka |
Publisher | Springer |
Pages | 239-264 |
Number of pages | 26 |
Publication status | Published - 2008 |