development of a consumer protection mechanism for health products in Bangkok

Abstract

The objective of this research was to develop a mechanism for health consumer protection in Bangkok (BKK) in accordance with the Action Plan and Procedures for Decentralization to Local Government Organizations Act, B.E. 2545 (2002). This act requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to transfer four missions to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA). While Missions 1–3 have been successfully completed, Mission 4—concerning the inspection of health products at points of sale—has not yet been transferred as planned. Consequently, the surveillance and management of health product inspections in Bangkok remain incomplete. This study employed Action Research based on the Deming Cycle (PDCA) to develop the 4M management resources: Man, Money, Material, and Management, covering the period from October 2016 to September 2020.

         The results revealed key mechanisms for developing health consumer protection, with focus group participants identifying the most significant success factor as the integration of existing management resources within the delegated agencies (e.g., integrating home visit activities with consumer protection tasks). Other critical factors included executive leadership, prioritizing the issue through collaborative policies, and a consensus on the need for academic support and training budgets from the FDA, combined with the BMA's local operating budgets. Furthermore, lack of clarity in the procurement or transfer of other 4M resources to the receiving agencies was found to be a major factor causing discontinuity in development mechanisms. This study proposes the development of a digital data linkage system, such as a real-time platform for reporting complaints and health product surveillance data, to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the operational mechanisms.