Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Effectiveness of Leader Village Health Volunteers Training Program on Preventing Cholangiocarcinoma in Thailand: Advantages for High-Risk Area with Limited Public Health Personnel

  • Published:
Journal of Cancer Education Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) still affects the health of rural people in northeast Thailand. Most people had a high level of overall risk according to CCA risk assessment in 2014. The question is how to make prevention of CCA as cost-effective as possible. The most appropriate answer is that someone should become a health leader to transfer knowledge to the public. This is the reason for developing the training program for village health volunteers (VHVs)—who play the role of change agents—to transfer knowledge to villagers. As for the evaluation of success, it is not evaluated if VHVs have increased knowledge or not, but it is assessed if people have better knowledge/attitudes, which lead to the correct behavior modification or not. After the program had been implemented for 2 years, people were evaluated on knowledge, attitudes, perception, and satisfaction with the operation of VHVs in providing people with the knowledge and ability to prevent CCA. It was found that people had a higher level of knowledge and attitudes in preventing CCA than before implementing the program. Also, they perceived that VHVs transferred knowledge to villagers so that they had the ability to prevent CCA. Nowadays, VHVs in the digital era (VHVs 4.0) is very useful in solving CCA problems in Thailand because they are the main drivers of success. Potential development of VHVs together with use of digital technology is an advantage for high-risk area with limited public health personnel.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Leiper RT (1915) Notes of the occurrence of parasites presumably rare in man. J R Army Med Corps 24(6):569–575

    Google Scholar 

  2. Sripa B, Kaewkes S, Sithithaworn P, Mairiang E, Laha T, Smout M, Pairojkul C, Bhudhisawasdi V, Tesana S, Thinkamrop B, Bethony JM, Loukas A, Brindley PJ (2007) Liver fluke induces cholangiocarcinoma. PLoS Med 4(7):e201. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0040201

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Pinlaor S, Ma N, Hiraku Y, Yongvanit P, Semba R, Oikawa S, Murata M, Sripa B, Sithithaworn P, Kawanishi S (2004) Repeated infection with Opisthorchis viverrini induces accumulation of 8-nitroguanine and 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanine in the bile duct of hamsters via inducible nitric oxide synthase. Carcinogenesis 25(8):1535–1542. https://doi.org/10.1093/carcin/bgh157

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Songserm N, Prasongwattana J, Sithithaworn P, Sripa B, Pipitkool V (2009) Cholangiocarcinoma in experimental hamsters with long-standing Opisthorchis viverrini infection. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 10(2):299–302

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Prasongwatana J, Laummaunwai P, Boonmars T, Pinlaor S (2013) Viable metacercariae of Opisthorchis viverrini in northeastern Thai cyprinid fish dishes – as part of a rational program for control of O. viverrini-associated cholangiocarcinoma. Parasitol Res 112(3):1323–1327. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-012-3154-9

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Imsamran W, Chaiwerawattana A, Wiangnon S, Pongnikorn D, Suwanrungruang K, Sangrajrang S, Buasom R (2015) Cancer in Thailand, vol VIII, 2010-2012. New Thammada Press, Bangkok

    Google Scholar 

  7. Songserm N, Woradet S, Bureelerd O, Charoenbut P (2016) Evaluation of cholangiocarcinoma risk and its related factors in wetland geographical communities of Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 17(4):1811–1815. https://doi.org/10.7314/apjcp.2016.17.4.1811

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Promthet S, Wiangnon S, Senarak W, Saranrittichai K, Vatanasapt P, Kamsa-ard S, Wongphuthorn P, Kasinpila C, Moore MA (2012) Evaluation of health education in the multi-professional intervention and training for ongoing volunteer-based community health programme in the north-east of Thailand. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 13(5):1753–1755. https://doi.org/10.7314/apjcp.2012.13.5.1753

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Songserm N, Bureelerd O, Thongchai C, Thongprung S (2014) Manual of the leader village health volunteer training program on preventing the opisthorchiasis and cholangiocarcinoma. Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University, Ubon Ratchathani [in Thai]

    Google Scholar 

  10. Wattanayingcharoenchai S, Nithikathkul C, Wonsaroj T, Royal L, Reungsang P (2011) Geographic information system of Opisthorchis viverrini in northeast Thailand. Asian Biomedicine 5(5):687–691. https://doi.org/10.5372/1905-7415.0505.090

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Limpawittayakul M, Boonchuaythanasit K, Chaiyapan N, Ponrachom C, Sukolpuk M (2016) The model of village health volunteer development for behavior modification for liver fluke prevention of local people in northeast region. Dis Control J 42(1):15–24 [in Thai]

    Google Scholar 

  12. Khetjoi S (2017) The roles of village health volunteers performing their work in Nonthon Sub-District Health Promoting Hospital, Muang District, Khon Kaen Province. Phimoldhamma Res Institute J 4(1):163–174 [in Thai]

    Google Scholar 

  13. Kowitt SD, Emmerling D, Fisher EB, Tanasugarn C (2015) Community health workers as agents of health promotion: analyzing Thailand's village health volunteer program. J Community Health 40(4):780–788. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-015-9999-y

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Aung PL, Silawan T, Rawiworrakul T, Min M (2018) Perceived role and its enhancing factors among the village health volunteers regarding malaria control in rural Myanmar. Indian J Public Health 62(1):10–14. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijph.IJPH_432_16

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Putthaprasert A, Yabkai Y (2018) Motivation factors affecting towards the performance on competency standards of village health volunteers, Sukhothai Province. Primary Health Care Division J 13(3):47–56 [in Thai]

    Google Scholar 

  16. Department of Health Service Support, Ministry of Public Health (2019) Application SMART VHV. Department of Health Service Support, Nonthaburi

    Google Scholar 

  17. Department of Provincial Administration, Ministry of Interior (2016) Official Statistics Registration Systems. General Register Office, Bangkok

    Google Scholar 

  18. Kaewpitoon SJ, Rujirakul R, Wakkuwattapong P, Matrakool L, Tongtawee T, Norkaew J, Kujapun J, Kampangsri W, Kaewpitoon N (2016) Implementation of health behavior education concerning liver flukes among village health volunteers in an epidemic area of Thailand. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 17(4):1713–1716. https://doi.org/10.7314/apjcp.2016.17.4.1713

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Sripa B, Tangkawattana S, Sangnikul T (2017) The Lawa model: a sustainable, integrated opisthorchiasis control program using the EcoHealth approach in the Lawa Lake region of Thailand. Parasitol Int 66(4):346–354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.parint.2016.11.013

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Tangkawattana S, Sripa B (2018) Integrative EcoHealth/One Health approach for sustainable liver fluke control: the Lawa Model. Adv Parasitol 102:115–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.apar.2018.07.002

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to all the participants, public health personnel, and village health volunteers of all study areas who volunteered to assist with this study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Community Health, Faculty of Public Health, Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University, Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand

    Nopparat Songserm, Onanong Bureelerd, Comsun Thongchai & Sumaporn Thongprung

  2. Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Sports Science, Thaksin University, Phatthalung, Thailand

    Somkiattiyos Woradet

  3. Department of Biological Science, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA

    Akhtar Ali

Authors
  1. Nopparat Songserm
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Somkiattiyos Woradet
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Onanong Bureelerd
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Comsun Thongchai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Sumaporn Thongprung
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Akhtar Ali
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nopparat Songserm.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic supplementary material

ESM 1

(PDF 316 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Songserm, N., Woradet, S., Bureelerd, O. et al. Effectiveness of Leader Village Health Volunteers Training Program on Preventing Cholangiocarcinoma in Thailand: Advantages for High-Risk Area with Limited Public Health Personnel. J Canc Educ 36, 1306–1315 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-020-01768-4

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-020-01768-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation