Many problems facing Thai society today are like tests that require mindfulness and wisdom to solve, so that Thailand can be a society in which wellbeing and equality are truly realized. This Thai Health report hopes to be a part of a process of reviewing past xperiences, creating new alternatives and finding solutions to all the problems that undermine wellbeing of Thais–whether that be an economic crisis, clashes of opinions, violence in different levels of the social structure or outdated attitudes that are lagging behind rapid social change.

Some articles, in this publication suggest new perspectives on social change. Some examples include discussing a reproductive health law to address abortion and teen pregnancy issues or an amendment to rape and sexual harassment laws in order to stop “rubbing salt into the wounds” to victims. Such actions can lead to lasting solutions to sex–related problems in Thai society.

Other articles covered here are follow–ups to issues that have been smoldering over the past years, such as conflict in the Deep South, droughts and floods, political crises and emerging diseases. This Thai Health report will continue to keep an eye on and update these issues so as to constantly remind all sectors of Thai society of the need to come up with effective solutions to existing challenges.

Thai Health 2011 also presents an important feature story on Health Impact Assessment (HIA). HIA is a particular social mechanism to protect lives considering individual, communal, social and environmental aspects that may otherwise be harmed by large government or non-government projects such as industrial estates, mining or infrastructure projects. The key feature of HIA is a participatory learning process which can include all members in society.

This year’s “12 National Health Indicators” look at key indexes on the health status of Thai people and Thailand’s health care system, some of which have witnessed improvements in recent years but others that remain to be urgently addressed. The 10 Outstanding Health Situations and 4 Achievements also record important events in Thai society in past year. Some are updates of previous events while others are emerging issues that require awareness and attention.