Development of Volunteer and Emergency Tourist-patients Referral System and Communication Process in Seamless Pattern for Remote Community Tourism Destination in Mueang Pan District, Lampang Province

Abstract

After COVID-19 pandemic, Thailand has placed importance on developing a tourism system that is prepared and safe. This study aimed to develop 30 health volunteers to enable seamless emergency referral of tourists in remote areas of Mueang Pan district, Lampang province. Instruments comprised of a general information questionnaire, interview guides and transcripts for in-depth interviews, non-participatory observation guides and focus group discussion guides and transcripts. Tools were organized into four parts: 1) general Information, 2) communication skills for initial emergency reporting and patient referral, 3) basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and 4) first aid skills.

A comparison of the average skill scores before and after the training among the group of volunteers was conducted using a paired t-test, with the objective of developing resuscitation and first aid skills for seamless emergency referral of tourists in remote areas of Mueang Pan District, Lampang Province. Results revealed that participants showed improvement in several areas, including communication skills for reporting and referring patients, basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills, and basic first aid skills. The latter included first aid for snake bites, insect stings, wound care and bleeding control, and fracture management. After the training, the average scores in all these skill areas were significantly higher than the pre-training scores, at p=0.05. The study found that training was effective in improving both basic resuscitation and first aid skills among the participants.