Kinship and Containment: A Qualitative Study of Village Health Volunteers’ Roles in Community-Based COVID-19 Response in Thailand

The COVID-19 pandemic had profound effects globally, disrupting health systems, societies, and economies. This research explored the roles and experiences of village health Volunteers (VHVs) in managing COVID-19 at the community level.

A hermeneutic phenomenology approach was used to explore VHVs’ lived experiences and meaning-making in the community’s COVID-19 prevention. This method emphasized interpretation within cultural and social contexts. Forty VHVs from Health Region 8 participated as informants. We gathered data through focus groups and audio recordings, then used content analysis through an iterative process to identify key themes.

COVID-19 control in Health Region 8 was driven by organically developed community mechanisms alongside formal support from public health authorities. VHVs, primarily middle-aged women, played a crucial role in surveillance, screening, and patient coordination within the community. The “spider web” network, rooted in kinship and rural social ties, effectively monitored mobility and mitigated transmission risks. This approach highlights the power of social and cultural capital in enabling effective community-based epidemic control.

Community-driven efforts, led by VHVs and kinship-based networks in Health Region 8, played a vital role in COVID-19 control by complementing formal health systems. These findings highlight the importance of social capital and local knowledge, though regional focus and qualitative methods limit generalizability and call for further validation.

Leveraging VHVs and community networks enhances COVID-19 control by integrating social and cultural capital with formal health systems, advocating for inclusion of indigenous knowledge in epidemic preparedness to improve public health responsiveness and community empowerment.