In the last twenty years, comparative studies have begun to develop a baseline level of knowledge about the status of health care around the world. One of the fundamental works in this area is the 1976 study conducted by the World Health Organization, the International Collaborative Study of Medical Care Utilization [WHO/ICS-MCU], edited by Robert Kohn and Kerr L. White. Begun in 1964, the study brought together researchers from the United Kingdom, Yugoslavia and the United States. They took aim at three basic questions:
The team compared health care consumption patterns in twelve different cities around the world. Using household survey methods-- questionnnaires applied to randomized population samples-- the team analyzed the need, use and allocation of health care resources in each location. In eight years of data collection, the team collected 48,000 responses representing 15 milion people. The results are summarized in the chart at left.
The work of this study has provided the foundation for ongoing research by groups such as INCLEN [International Clinical Epidemiology Network], an organization sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation. INCLEN aims to change priorities and the allocation of human and financial resources to provide more balanced health services, especially in the developing world. This involves the management of facilities and services to meet the needs of the populations served.
[information for this page was abstracted from WHO/ICS-MCU, 1976, and "An Interview with Kerr L. White.]
The Concept of Primary Health Care
