Disease Prevention in Primary Health Care: Integrating Theory and Real-World Practice
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บทคัดย่อ
Primary health care (PHC) is the foundation of effective disease prevention, integrating health promotion, early detection, treatment, rehabilitation, and community-based care. Despite strong theoretical support, translating preventive strategies into routine PHC practices remains challenging, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This article aims to synthesize contemporary evidence on the role of PHC in disease prevention by integrating theoretical frameworks with real-world implementation and by identifying key barriers, facilitators, and strategies for strengthening preventive care. A narrative review of 14 eligible publications (from 2020 to 2026) was conducted using evidence from original research, systematic reviews, scoping reviews, and World Health Organization (WHO) policy documents. Literature was identified through PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and reference list searches. Evidence was synthesized thematically according to the five levels of prevention. Community-based health literacy interventions and lifestyle programs significantly improved preventive behaviors, while community health workers enhanced screening and linkage to care. However, implementation gaps persisted: limited adoption of WHO-recommended “best buy” interventions, low screening-to-treatment linkage (37.5%), workforce shortages, medicine stockouts, fragmented health information systems, and sociocultural barriers. Integrated human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–noncommunicable disease (NCD) care models showed stronger HIV retention (>80%) vs. NCD retention (70–78%) outcomes, highlighting inequities in integrated care. Digital health technologies and multidisciplinary, community-oriented approaches emerged as key facilitators. PHC remains an effective platform for comprehensive disease prevention. Strengthening preventive services requires sustained investment in workforce capacity, community engagement, digital health, financing, and integrated health systems.
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ข้อคิดเห็นและเนื้อหาที่ปรากฏในบทความเป็นความเห็นส่วนบุคคลของผู้แต่งแต่ละท่าน มิได้สะท้อนถึงทัศนะของวารสารหรือหน่วยงาน/สถาบันต้นสังกัด ความถูกต้องและข้อผิดพลาดใด ๆ เป็นความรับผิดชอบของผู้แต่งโดยเฉพาะ
การนำบทความ เนื้อหา ข้อมูล หรือภาพประกอบไปใช้ซ้ำหรือเผยแพร่ในลักษณะอื่น ต้องได้รับอนุญาตเป็นลายลักษณ์อักษรจาก วารสารวิจัยทางการแพทย์ การพยาบาลและสาธารณสุข โดยโรงพยาบาลทุ่งสง ก่อนเท่านั้น
เอกสารอ้างอิง
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