Community involvement in health development: a review of the concept and practice

The concept of community involvement is a central feature of the health-for-all philosophy that has guided WHO's work during the past two decades. As the fundamental linkages between health and development have become clearer, "community involvement in health" has been superseded by the notion of "community involvement in health development" - which emphasizes that community action for health is also community action for development. This book is the latest in a series focusing on the theme of "Public Health in Action", which has emphasized practical, community-based measures that promote health and development among those in greatest need. This book examines common themes of community involvement in health development by focusing on these case studies: one each in Bolivia, Nepal and Senegal, which represent collaborative efforts on the part of international health development workers and their in-country counterparts. Substantial effort was devoted to elucidating the factors - political, sociological, organizational or economic - that had an impact on these community health development projects. Although their successes and failures differ, certain common themes emerge, including the untapped potential of "health development structures", also called civil society organizations, which are discussed in the penultimate chapter. The final chapter analyses the future of community involvement in health development, with reference to ongoing debates on market-oriented reform of health systems. This book should be of interest to all those who, while seeking new approaches to structural problems in the field of health development, are concerned to integrate the wisdom of experience in diverse settings.