Healthcare units at the tambon level will keep receiving their budget under the universal healthcare scheme, even after their management is transferred to tambon administrative organisations, said deputy secretary-general of the National Health Security Office (NHSO), Apichat Rodsom.
Starting on Oct 1, healthcare units at the tambon level will receive their budget directly from their local administrative units, in an attempt to improve the units’ efficiency.
The transfer is part of the government’s decentralisation plan, he said.
To date, the management of 441 out of 3,264 such units across six provinces have been transferred to their local administrative units, he said, adding no reports of service disruptions have come in to date from patients or anyone else involved in the process.
According to the acting deputy permanent secretary for public health, Phongkasem Khaimuk, the smooth transition was due to proper planning and preparation, which have allowed some of these facilities to order supplies two months in advance, minimising the chance of logitics headaches.
Separately, the Ministry of Public Health has signed a memorandum of understanding with some of the healthcare providers under its management to supply healthcare facilities at the tambon level with the medical staff they need.
The ministry has also set up a centre to handle problems that may arise during and after the transfer of these tambon healthcare units to their local administrative organisations, he said.
So far, he said, no complaint has been received, except from some local healthcare workers — who used to be employed by the Public Health Ministry but are now legally employed by their local tambon administrative organisations — who are concerned about their rights as employees.
“If any of them want to be transferred back to the ministry, the decision will be made by their current employers,” he said.