Bangkok plans health zoning to improve life quality for residents
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is looking to divide the city into seven zones based on density of population and public health units, said city governor Chadchart Sittipunt.
Chadchart was speaking at the “Bangkok Health Zoning” academic forum, which kicked off at the Twin Towers Hotel in Pathum Wan district on Thursday.
Health zoning will enable the BMA to improve healthcare provision by targeting the needs of people in different communities, he said. The initiative is part of the city’s “9 Dan 9 Dee” (“9 excellences in 9 aspects”) policy to improve people’s quality of life with medical treatment, education, vocational training, and other services.
“Bangkok is a centre of leading medical providers, medical colleges, pharmacies and top-tier medical practitioners,” Chadchart noted. “However, we still lack comprehensive cooperation among these parties and related agencies. Health zoning will help us allocate these resources and personnel more efficiently.”
He said the Bangkok Health Zoning initiative has two major goals: To build a strong, comprehensive public health network and to use modern technology to achieve efficient, seamless public health services.
He added that the capital’s health zoning will serve as a model for future public health projects in the city and throughout Thailand.
The Bangkok Health Zoning forum was joined by BMA executives and representatives from Siriraj Hospital, Chulalongkorn Hospital, the National Health Security Office, pharmacies, and related agencies.
The BMA is also seeking to improve healthcare provision for city residents under a medical sandbox programme initiated eight months ago. Under the Dusit and Ratchaphiphat models, hospitals are acting as system managers, and coordinating with public health units or area managers to provide comprehensive healthcare to communities in their locales.
City Hall said the programme has successfully fulfilled the needs of local communities in primary, secondary and tertiary levels of treatment as well as long-term care, prompting the BMA to prepare to expand the sandbox to six more districts.
