ThaiHealth Academy Partners with World Bank to Strengthen Mental Health
Referral Systems in Thailand’s Southern Border Provinces

Multisectoral Psychosocial Referral Systems

ThaiHealth Academy (THA), in collaboration with the World Bank, organized a training workshop and dialogue forum on Strengthening Multisectoral Psychosocial Referral Systems from 20–22 January 2026 in Narathiwat, Yala, and Pattani. The initiative aimed to enhance knowledge, build professional capacity, and strengthen coordinated mental health responses in line with the local context of the southern border provinces.

The program brought together administrators and practitioners from diverse sectors, including public health, justice, education, social development and human security, local government organizations, the private sector, and civil society. A total of 18 expert speakers and 81 participants took part in experience-sharing sessions and collaborative discussions designed to reinforce area-based networks.

Overall feedback reflected a high level of satisfaction. Participants highlighted the program’s comprehensive content, clarity, and practical applicability—particularly in strengthening referral processes, inter-agency coordination, and community-based support for vulnerable populations. Many also emphasized the importance of continuing such initiatives to ensure sustainable mental healthcare systems in the southern border areas.

Selected Participant Reflections

“Social work functions as an ecosystem of interdependence. Building networks—like a spider web—is essential to strengthening the whole system. This program has helped us form those critical connections.”

“This training was highly valuable for advancing work in the southern border provinces. Continued activities like this are essential for ongoing learning and collaboration.”

“The referral framework linking networks to policy implementation will enable us to work together more sustainably in the long term.”

“The program was high quality, and the knowledge gained can be directly applied within our communities.”

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