Development of a System for Monitoring and Surveillance of Drug Use in Private Healthcare Facilities for Consumer Protection in Krabi Province

Abstract

 Drug safety is a core component of healthcare quality; however, regulatory oversight in private healthcare facilities particularly in tourism-driven provinces such as Krabi continues to face challenges from contextually inappropriate reporting systems and insufficient stakeholder participation. This participatory action research aimed to develop a drug use monitoring and surveillance system suitable for private healthcare facilities in Krabi Province. The study was conducted in three phases: situational analysis, system development, and implementation and evaluation, using a mixed-methods approach. Purposively selected stakeholders comprised 20 practitioners and public health officials in phases 1 and 2, and 10 pilot private healthcare facilities in phase 3. Research instruments included a semi-structured interview guide and an evaluation questionnaire. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic content analysis, while quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

The findings from phase 1 indicated key barriers, including the burden of redundant reporting systems and the absence of a functional two-way communication mechanism, particularly the lack of a structured feedback system for practitioners. The participatory process led to the development of an easy-to-use electronic reporting tool and two core mechanisms: quarterly feedback and a Pharmaceutical Safety Collaborative Forum. Evaluation after a 3-month pilot implementation showed that users reported very high levels of satisfaction and feasibility (overall mean = 4.62, S.D. = 0.41), especially regarding the usefulness of feedback reports (Mean = 4.80, S.D. = 0.42) and ease of use of the reporting tool (Mean = 4.70, S.D. = 0.48), demonstrating that the system effectively addressed users’ real-world needs.

The developed system not only reduces workload and enhances surveillance efficiency but also serves as a prototype for shifting regulatory practice from a control-oriented approach toward a collaborative model. It holds potential for strengthening drug-related consumer protection in Krabi and other regions with similar contexts.