Village Health Volunteers
Good Health Starts at Home
According to Thailand’s 6th National Health Assembly, there is a gap that exists between academics and villagers in terms of communication, especially in regards to zoonotic diseases transmitted to humans from wildlife and livestock. To address that gap, THOHUN organized a workshop to enhance villagers’ awareness of rabies and the use of the One Health approach as its solution, and form a pool of trainers who can continue to advocate for One Health beyond the workshop.
The workshop was hosted in Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand where rabies, leptospirosis, brucellosis, tuberculosis, and other zoonotic diseases still occur.
75 Village Health Volunteers (VHV) and Livestock Volunteers (LV), who serve as the backbone of Thailand’s primary health care system, were introduced to the One Health approach, zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and methods to formulate control strategies.
A subset of the participants were further trained to become trainers, as well as sources of accurate health information within the communities. Using rabies as a model disease, the trainers were taught how to identify existing beliefs and misconceptions, formulate preventive strategies, how to relay messages to the community, and how to become leaders and train other villagers and the students in communities.
With the proper training and supervision, such workforces can better serve their own communities, prevent diseases, and save lives. The creation of a network of Village Health Volunteers and Livestock Volunteers also presents the opportunity for them to collaborate in the future and be able to solve health problems locally in a sustainable manner.
About the Author
Waroon Boonyaudomsart is the Publicity Manager for the Thailand One Health University Network (THOHUN), a network supported by the USAID One Health Workforce project.
