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2021 year in review
2021 year in review
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Dr Jadej Thammatacharee, Secretary-General of National Health Security Office (NHSO)
Last year was full of upheavals for me and all staff at the National Health Security Office (NHSO).
We were and still are challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic in many ways from coping with the surges of new cases and resource constraints to readjusting our financial mechanism and the organization's management.
It was a year with a lot of pressure on us, as an organization overseeing the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) and leading many health initiatives.
It was a year of hardship. We observed people die because of COVID-19. Many of them, especially the poor, passed away at home because they couldn't reach out to hospitals.
But it was also a year that we learned many lessons. It has driven us to rethink and revise how we run our organization and the healthcare scheme to prevent death and avoid the worst-case scenario in which the pandemic would be uncontrollable.
We learned to make significant changes in three points to cope with the crisis.
First, we have accelerated our pace in every task we are involved in, including speeding up our reimbursement system. Previously, we took around a month to review medical fee claims submitted by health providers and complete their transactions.
Now the procedure is shortened to two weeks, allowing health providers to cope with the surge of COVID-19 cases.
The cutting short of the reimbursement process also encourages hospital operators to provide on-time coronavirus testing and treatment without any concern for financial burdens.
We have also adjusted our payment terms to allow hotel owners and local communities to claim the cost of running COVID-19 quarantine facilities.
Fast track for no-fault compensation requests has been implemented, allowing vaccine recipients with adverse effects to claim compensation within a week after they launch the complaints.
To handle the surge of COVID-19 cases, we have expanded the capacity of the NHSO 1330 hotline from 300 to 3,000 lines to assist people in finding hospital beds or matching them with local clinics that will provide them with care.
Second, we have supported new initiatives that answer the needs of people under travel restrictions.
Those initiatives include home and community isolation programs, in which COVID-19 patients with Asymptomatic or mild symptoms receive remote care such as thermometer, oxygen saturation monitor, food and medicine delivery, and health counseling and closely monitor the patients on the phone, video call, or social media messaging.
We have worked together with many organizations, including the Public Health Ministry and Krung Thai Bank, to develop mobile applications for people's registering in vaccination programs and getting free antigen test kits.
Third, we have widely collaborated with multi-players from public and private sectors to fight against the pandemic, including supporting civil society, monk groups, and medical institutions to set up isolation facilities for the coronavirus patients in Bangkok metropolitans.
We joined hands with Rural Doctors Society, Urban Institute for Disease Prevention and Control, Thanyarak Hospital, Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, and education institutes, including Praboromarajchanok Institute and Mahidol University, to run coronavirus testing centers across Bangkok.
This collaboration makes mass testing and treatment during quarantine possible to identify the new COVID-19 cases and contain them as quickly as possible. It is one of the recipes that make Thailand manage the pandemic very well.
There are many aspects of collaboration and numerous organizations that I can't name all of them here. The crisis showed us the importance of multi-sectoral partnership to protect people's lives.
Despite the pandemic, the NHSO has never halted the improvement of health interventions in areas beyond the coronavirus.
Last year, we introduced new items into the UCS benefits package, including automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) for people living with chronic kidney failure, cochlear implants for children with hearing loss, ledipasvir-sofosbuvir medication for treating hepatitis B, new medicines for cancer patients, and many more.
To enhance health promotion and disease prevention, the NHSO introduced screening tests for thalassemia and syphilis in pregnant women and their partners. We have also supported other interventions, including self measured blood pressure monitoring and a smoking cessation hotline.
Public participation is another area that we have prioritized. Though the pandemic's travel restriction, we continued arranging online public consultations with multi-stakeholders to hear their ideas on how we could improve the UCS.
We launched a website ucbp.nhso.go.th, where everyone can drop ideas or suggestions on the UCS benefits package's improvement and track the NHSO's adoption of those ideas.
These are just some examples that reflect the NHSO's commitment to ensuring good health and health for all.
As the NHSO's secretary-general, I promise to lead the organization and my people to pursue this commitment, no matter in a time of crisis or normal situation.
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Dr Jadej Thammatacharee, Secretary-General of National Health Security Office (NHSO)
Last year was full of upheavals for me and all staff at the National Health Security Office (NHSO).
We were and still are challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic in many ways from coping with the surges of new cases and resource constraints to readjusting our financial mechanism and the organization's management.
It was a year with a lot of pressure on us, as an organization overseeing the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) and leading many health initiatives.
It was a year of hardship. We observed people die because of COVID-19. Many of them, especially the poor, passed away at home because they couldn't reach out to hospitals.
But it was also a year that we learned many lessons. It has driven us to rethink and revise how we run our organization and the healthcare scheme to prevent death and avoid the worst-case scenario in which the pandemic would be uncontrollable.
We learned to make significant changes in three points to cope with the crisis.
First, we have accelerated our pace in every task we are involved in, including speeding up our reimbursement system. Previously, we took around a month to review medical fee claims submitted by health providers and complete their transactions.
Now the procedure is shortened to two weeks, allowing health providers to cope with the surge of COVID-19 cases.
The cutting short of the reimbursement process also encourages hospital operators to provide on-time coronavirus testing and treatment without any concern for financial burdens.
We have also adjusted our payment terms to allow hotel owners and local communities to claim the cost of running COVID-19 quarantine facilities.
Fast track for no-fault compensation requests has been implemented, allowing vaccine recipients with adverse effects to claim compensation within a week after they launch the complaints.
To handle the surge of COVID-19 cases, we have expanded the capacity of the NHSO 1330 hotline from 300 to 3,000 lines to assist people in finding hospital beds or matching them with local clinics that will provide them with care.
Second, we have supported new initiatives that answer the needs of people under travel restrictions.
Those initiatives include home and community isolation programs, in which COVID-19 patients with Asymptomatic or mild symptoms receive remote care such as thermometer, oxygen saturation monitor, food and medicine delivery, and health counseling and closely monitor the patients on the phone, video call, or social media messaging.
We have worked together with many organizations, including the Public Health Ministry and Krung Thai Bank, to develop mobile applications for people's registering in vaccination programs and getting free antigen test kits.
Third, we have widely collaborated with multi-players from public and private sectors to fight against the pandemic, including supporting civil society, monk groups, and medical institutions to set up isolation facilities for the coronavirus patients in Bangkok metropolitans.
We joined hands with Rural Doctors Society, Urban Institute for Disease Prevention and Control, Thanyarak Hospital, Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, and education institutes, including Praboromarajchanok Institute and Mahidol University, to run coronavirus testing centers across Bangkok.
This collaboration makes mass testing and treatment during quarantine possible to identify the new COVID-19 cases and contain them as quickly as possible. It is one of the recipes that make Thailand manage the pandemic very well.
There are many aspects of collaboration and numerous organizations that I can't name all of them here. The crisis showed us the importance of multi-sectoral partnership to protect people's lives.
Despite the pandemic, the NHSO has never halted the improvement of health interventions in areas beyond the coronavirus.
Last year, we introduced new items into the UCS benefits package, including automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) for people living with chronic kidney failure, cochlear implants for children with hearing loss, ledipasvir-sofosbuvir medication for treating hepatitis B, new medicines for cancer patients, and many more.
To enhance health promotion and disease prevention, the NHSO introduced screening tests for thalassemia and syphilis in pregnant women and their partners. We have also supported other interventions, including self measured blood pressure monitoring and a smoking cessation hotline.
Public participation is another area that we have prioritized. Though the pandemic's travel restriction, we continued arranging online public consultations with multi-stakeholders to hear their ideas on how we could improve the UCS.
We launched a website ucbp.nhso.go.th, where everyone can drop ideas or suggestions on the UCS benefits package's improvement and track the NHSO's adoption of those ideas.
These are just some examples that reflect the NHSO's commitment to ensuring good health and health for all.
As the NHSO's secretary-general, I promise to lead the organization and my people to pursue this commitment, no matter in a time of crisis or normal situation.
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