The development of herbal stores in Surat Thani Province

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to develop of herbal stores in Surat Thani Province with legal standards. Action research was consisted of four phases: planning, action, observation, and reflection. The study involved 52 licensees and regulatory officers, as well as 34 herb stores. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected using a knowledge survey, store inspection record forms, and semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Paired t-test, and content analysis.

The results showed that participants’ knowledge of legal requirements for herbal stores significantly improved following participation in the intervention compared with baseline (p < 0.001). The number of stores passed inspection standards increased from none to nine (26.50 percent). Moreover, the overall scores from the second round of store inspections were significantly higher than those from the first round (p < 0.001). Qualitative data revealed that licensees and regulatory officers recognized the diversity of herbal products, including both finished preparations and raw herbal parts. The Herbal Product Act is a newly enacted law accompanied by the continuous issuance of subordinate regulations, it was recommended that the Food and Drug Administration, through the Division of Herbal Products, organize regular clarification meetings and develop effective communication materials to ensure stakeholders are well-informed and able to apply the regulations in practice.