Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) is a systematic, semi-structured activity carried out in the field by a multidisciplinary team that is designed to obtain new information and hypotheses about rural life. This article reports the results of an RRA conducted in Kampung Paris 1 (KGP1), Kinabatangan, Sabah under the Annual Health Promotion Program of the School of Medicine, Universiti Malaysia Sabah. A systematic random sampling was used to recruit the villagers and data was obtained through compilation of pre-existing data, field observation, structured interviews with key informants and villagers. Cardiorespiratory diseases were prevalent in KGP1. Common water sources such as rain water collected in dug wells in KGP1 were unhygienic. Dangerous toxic fumes were produced by the burning of municipal wastes nearby village houses. The villagers of KGP1 were exposed to various farm animals, which may harbor zoonoses. Health care services are limited in KGP1. Villagers who were not poor (>RM897) represented 48% of the population, followed by the poor (RM503-897), 20% and the hardcore poor (1.00 person per bedroom. Poor water hygiene, polluted air from open burning, exposure to farm animals, poverty, poor education, overcrowding and inadequate health care services were among the few possible factors affecting the health of villagers in KGP1. Formal rigorous research should be conducted in the future to facilitate specific health interventions in areas of need such as KGP1.
Rural Population ; Rural Health ; Rural Health Services ; Health Status ; Malaysia

A survey on illness patterns and health seeking behaviour of 670 older persons had been conducted in Ba Vi district, Ha Tay province, results showed that: elderly women reported more acute illness than elderly men did; there were significant differences in term of acute and chronic illness patterns between elderly men and women; both men and women most commonly sought health care from private practitioners, then by self-treatment and from commune health centres, however, women used hospitals less often than men; for the elderly, the most common reason for choosing a health care provider was the nearness; women more significantly than men depended on others to decide the choice of the type of health care service they should use
Health Services ; aged ; Rural Population

COVID-19 ; Humans ; Rural Health Services ; Rural Population

The Health Post Project in Gang Wha Gun is part of the Yonsei University Medical College's Community Health Teaching Project. Two townships, Son Won Myun and Nae Ga Myun, with a total population of 14,000 are being guided through a planned change process in order to raise health consciousness in the community based education of medical and other health manpower through demonstration of relevant community health principles and provision of entry points for applied teaching. The key to community access is provided through village based Family Health Workers (FHW) who, according to carefully designed selection procedures, functions, service package, training and implementation plan now serve as semi-independent village health representatives. The FHW is supervised by the government employed township health workers who in turn received re-orientation as multi-purpose workers. Their functions were re-designed according to project needs. Thus the government health services in the target area have been extended to the household level through FHW activities in MCH, TB care and Family Planning. The Health Post Project provides a statistically controlled environment with a base line survey and constantly incoming data. It also provides communication channels for reciprocal understanding of the health issues and problems between traditional villagers and city educated faculty and students. Moreover, the Health Post Project provides motivation for the communities to solve their health problems with existing resources to the highest degree possible. Finally, the development of grass-root level services in cooperation with the communities has potential for long term benefits. These include relevant training of health manpower regarding principles and practice of rural community health. It also includes the study and development of health manpower and service packages, streamlining of administrative and evaluation procedures, and information urgently needed for health planning.
Community Health Services* ; Delivery of Health Care* ; Human ; Korea ; Rural Health*

Access to Information ; Child ; Child Health Services ; Disasters ; Earthquakes ; Humans ; Rural Health Services ; Women's Health Services

Health Education ; Humans ; Occupational Health Services ; Rural Population

Background: People from rural communities are not spared from COVID-19. But implementing preventive measures and strategies can be made to control the spread. Objective: This study was conducted to describe the epidemiologic situation and the healthcare capacity of the locality, determine the responses and strategies implemented in the control of COVID-19, and explain the activities performed in relation to the epidemiologic situation in Tarangnan, Samar – a low-income class municipality in the Philippines. Methods: A mixed qualitative–quantitative design was employed in this study. Descriptive documentary research design through review of records from March to October 2020 was utilized. For the qualitative context, a case study design was employed whereby focus group discussions and key informant interviews using open-ended questions were performed. Results: A total of 66 individuals were recorded as having COVID-19 in the municipality from March to October 2020. The first recorded confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Eastern Visayas were two adults in Tarangnan, Samar, in March 2020. Since then, additional confirmed cases have been recorded every month, but confirmed COVID-19 dramatically reduced from August to October 2020. Qualitative analysis revealed stringent COVID-19 preventive measures reflected in the confirmed case numbers. The tailwinds of the COVID-19 response include: the SARS pandemic precedent, coordination and communication, outpouring of support from other government and nongovernment partners, and innovative community-based approaches. The headwinds of COVID-19 response were challenges in imposing minimum health and safety precautions, stigmatization, and discrimination. Conclusion Even if challenges have arisen in implementing measures against the spread of the disease, good outcomes have been achieved through persistent good practice, positive modifications, and community-based innovations.
Community Participation ; Community Health Services ; COVID-19 ; Rural Health ; Philippines

This study attempts to examine the performances of Myun Health Workers-the frontline workers in the Korean rural health care delivery system. The time-activity approach was mainly utilized as a measuring tool. This study was undertaken in September 1976 with 35 Myun Health Workers at the Kang Wha Country. The pretested time-activity approach sheets were filled out daily for one month by those Myun Health Workers themselves. Statistical means and variances of analysis were utilized for statistical method in comparing some activities and functions converged into time distribution. Findings: 1. The workers's average working hours derived in this study is 8 hours and 48 minutes per day, which takes half an hour longer than normal schedule. 2. They spend 56% working hour for direct services, in other words, the main function, 22% for supportive function, and 22% for other activities, the unrelated health services. 3. Considering the total working hours of main function, out-center activity is far more than in-center services with the ratio of 70% to 30% respectively, which proves, therefore, that the main activity of the workers is home visiting. 4. It takes 20 minutes purely for home visition and takes 14 minutes for transportation. 5. This research also indicates that such factors as characteristics of the health workers and myun influence in shaping the structures of the worker's function and activity: a. The workers whose working site is located is myun office spend 15% among total working hours in carring out official myun activities, which is incidentally unrelated to health services, while the health subcenter have no rooms for administrative jobs for myun office. b. The workers whose office is in health subcenter contribute much time in doing main function and those working in special project distribute more time in performing supportive function. c. The types of workers are another dominant factor to influence the components of worker's functions and activities. d. MPW II, whose function is reorganized by special project in 2 myuns shows different pattern of time distribution compared to the TB worker orFP worker in the ordinatry area. MPW II distributes their time evenly in performing MCH program, T.B. program, F.P. program and education activity, while the unipurpose workers engage in carring out only their dominant role. e. Another variables which involve th variation of the worker's activity can be illustrated with the variables like target population, size of myun and convenience for transportation, among which the latter two are remarkable factors in determining the time for out-center service.
Appointments and Schedules ; Education ; Health Services ; Health Services Needs and Demand ; House Calls ; Rural Health ; Transportation

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the status of the functional health literacy of the elderly living in a rural community and to identify the influencing factors on the functional health literacy. METHODS: Subjects (n=238) aged over 60 years were selected for data collection. Functional health literacy was measured by Korean Health Literacy, which consisted of 15 items including eight numeracy and seven comprehension items. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA with Scheffe test, and stepwise multiple regression were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The mean score of total functional health literacy was 6.66+/-3.31, numeracy was 3.52+/-1.76, and comprehension was 3.41+/-2.10. Of the subjects, 39.1% showed a low score below the median split. In the results of stepwise multiple regression, the factors affecting functional health literacy were basic literacy, age, number of chronic diseases, self-reported health status, and gender. These factors accounted for 33.0% of functional health literacy. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that interventions for improving functional health literacy are necessary to enhance elders' ability of self-care management. In addition, it is needed to take into account the individual characteristics of the subjects depending on their gender, age, and health status.
Aged* ; Chronic Disease ; Comprehension ; Data Collection ; Health Literacy* ; Humans ; Rural Health Services ; Rural Population ; Self Care

Objectives: To determine the beliefs and attitudes towards diabetes of rural health care providers in Aklan, Philippines using the Diabetes Attitude Scale 3 (DAS-3) and to determine factors associated with it. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional analytic survey. A total of 339 health care providers were given self-administered DAS-3 questionnaires. Additional data gathered included their age, highest educational attainment, position, municipality class, diabetes as a co-morbidity, attendance to diabetes classes, and family history of diabetes. Results: Rural health care providers showed an overall mean positive attitude score of 3.5 using the DAS-3 questionnaire. In decreasing order, mean scores of participants according to subscale is as follows: “Need for Special Training in Education” (4.13) >“Autonomy of diabetes for patients” (3.70) >“Psychosocial Impact of Diabetes” (3.60) >“Value of Tight Glucose Control” (3.14) and “Seriousness of Type 2 Diabetes” (3.09). Physicians have the highest mean scores consistently in all subscales compared to other health care providers. Among the different factors considered, educational attainment (p=0.005) and work position (p=<0.001) were found out to affect attitude score of health care providers. Conclusions This study has shown that the majority of the rural health care providers believe in the need for special training of healthcare providers, psychosocial impact of diabetes and patient autonomy in diabetes self-care. However, the majority still do not strongly believe in the seriousness of diabetes and the benefits of tight sugar control. Educational attainment and work position are the consistent factors that impact diabetes-related attitude; therefore, the need to strengthen continuous medical education among health care providers
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Attitude ; Rural Health Services