Development of Health Tourism Management Model of Nakhon Si Thammarat

Abstract

          This qualitative research aimed to 1) study current of visions, policy, planning strategies and colla-
borative activities from public and private sectors, 2) investigate the current health tourism management
models of Nakhon Si Thammarat, and 3) offer the health tourism management recommendation a models
in the form of consortium network to be prepared Nakhon Si Thammarat becoming a health tourism center
in the upper south. Samples included from a tourism consortium network of Nakhon Si Thammarat, the
selection of samples was unstructured to meet the research objectives while considering individual jobs
and responsibilities from 50 organizations as criteria. Both interview and focus-group participants were
selected through purposive sampling. One participant was selected from each of the 50 organizations
for the interviews and 30 participants of these were selected for the focus group. Research revealed that
no record was identified for Nakhon Si Thammarat in relation to visions, health tourism strategies and
health tourism management model. There was an evidence for jointly work as a consortium network via
nonverbal agreement at a cooperation level. The comparison among Nakhon Si Thammarat and provincial
group in the upper south in terms of health tourism consortium network model comprised 2 main parts,
the collaboration of 4 components by SAPA model; a cycle that requires a sequence of steps consisting
of 4 elements included 1) Sources of governing bodies (S), 2) Actions from local to regional level (A),
3) Production and development (P) and 4) Assessment (A), and the tourism demand and supply management.
It was found that Nakhon Si Thammarat province has a complete and all needed components in health
tourism management model. Four factors of TMBC model included 1) Trust (T), 2) Mobilization (M), 3) Benefit
(B) and 4) Communication (C), was also applied as a key success factor as well as 3 steps of operational
process as follows. 1) Using strategies for development of health tourism to promote. 2) Presenting infor-
mation to integrate provincial cluster committee, East Coast Southern Subregion to be accepted from 6
provinces of the upper south through the chief administrative of Nakhon Si Thammmarat office and the
governor to add this agenda in the meeting. And 3) allocating roles, function/responsibility, network colla-
boration, operation period, then Nakhon Si Thammarat should be a prototype and further develop to be
a center of health tourism management in the upper south.