Issues Arising from the Creation of Special Economic Zone in Southern Thailand: A Scoping Step of Rapid Health Impact Assessment

Background: Rapid Health Impact Assessment (Rapid HIA) for Special Economic Zone (SEZ) has not been undertaken in Thailand. We aimed to develop a Rapid HIA model for policymaking by using Songkhla SEZ as a study model. Methods: Four-stage of the research and development based on HIA process were used: 1) drafting the model using literature reviews and focus group discussions, 2) collecting additional information from 24 stakeholders, and conducting an in-depth interview with six informants, 3) verifying the model by drawing agreements on the model from 17 related agencies and experts, and 4) confirming the validity of the final model using seven experts. The study were conducted from Jan 2018 to Feb 2019. Content analysis and constant comparison were used to analyze the data. Results: A four-step assessment model was obtained. They included public screening, scoping, assessing, and reviewing and influencing. Public screening is deduced from a meeting with organizations and related personnel. Public scoping is an outcome of literature reviewing and meeting with stakeholders and academics. The assessment step focuses on secondary data from related agencies and a participatory workshop with stakeholders and academics. Finally, a meeting with stakeholders and academics, including internet broadcasting, is the reviewing and influencing process. Conclusion: This Rapid HIA model was specifically developed for SEZ policy. Reviewing and influencing steps were combined, whereas the monitoring and evaluation step was removed for further operations. This model depends on the official appointment of the steering committee. HIA practitioners should be experienced academics from higher educational institutions.

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A Novel Community Health Impact Assessment towards a Public Policy: A Case Study of Biomass Power Plants in Southern Thailand

Journal of Southwest Jiaotong University ◽

10.35741/issn.0258-2724.56.3.30 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 56 (3) ◽

pp. 361-371

Author(s):

Sawpheeyah Nima ◽

Pongthep Sutheravut ◽

Yuttana Homket

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Power Plant ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Community Health ◽

Local Governments ◽

Health Impact Assessment ◽

Health Impact ◽

Energy Utilization ◽

Southern Thailand ◽

Biomass Power Plant

For the first time, this article describes the novel process based on the integrated community health impact assessment (CHIA) for renewable energy technologies that have been globally accepted, such as a biomass power plant, to reduce health inequities in Southern Thailand. The co-design foresight study and participatory action research (PAR) using multiple qualitative methodologies, including key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and Delphi expert panels. The study was conducted the integrated approach during May-December 2019 in a small town, Southern Thailand. Strategic foresight enabled the community to identify future scenarios of enterprises, institutions, and others in the short, medium, and long term by analyzing internal and external factors. First, the compassionate communities served as a strategy to build support for individuals, schools, workplaces, civic organizations, and local governments to tackle health challenges surrounding severe problems. Second, community readiness played a role in assessing communities' adoption of mindfulness to deal with the biomass power plant. Third, the social and ecological effects presented the livelihood and living in the Southern region as the main determinants in modern energy utilization under Thailand's policy. These factors contributed to CHIA's entire process of producing health promotion, social learning, and public policy derived by the community. The findings of this study are geared towards providing advanced practical decision-support tools for stakeholders responsible for policy and investment decisions in a community near the biomass power plant constructions.

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