The Alma-Ata Declaration of 1978 marked a potential turning point in global health, signaling a commitment to primary health care that could have improved the safety of air, food, water, roads, homes, and workplaces in all 180 countries that signed it. Unfortunately, progress in many countries stalled in the 1980s. The declaration was, however, embraced by a number of countries, where its implementation led to substantial improvement in citizen health.
Achieving Health for Allreveals how, inspired by Alma-Ata, the governments of seven countries executed comprehensive primary health care systems, deploying new cadres of community-based health workers to bring relevant services to ordinary households. Drawing on a set of narrative case studies from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Nepal, Ghana, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam, these cases explain how a primary health care focus succeeded in improving population health. The book also conclusively demonstrates that comprehensive, multisectoral, community-controlled, and population-level primary health care is a viable strategy, one that, against the odds, has led to sustainable, scalable good health at lower cost.
Bringing together a group of experts to analyze the forty-year legacy of the Alma-Ata Declaration, Achieving Health for All is a fascinating look at the work needed to transform nations from places that make people sick to places where they stay healthy. An inspiring array of lessons learned along the way show how readers can make policies that support the health of all people.
Contributors: Onaopemipo (Ope) Abiodun, Vinya Ariyaratne, John Koku Awoonor-Williams, Kedar Prasad Baral, Ayaga A. Bawah, Pedro M+ís Bermejo, Fred N. Binka, David Bishai, Carolina Cardona, Dennis Carlson, Hoang Khanh Chi, Svea Closser, Luc Barriere Constantin, Zufan Abera Damtew, Marlou de Rouw, Nadia Diamond-Smith, Philip Forth, Mignote Solomon Haile, Nguyen Thanh Huong, Taufique Joarder, Alice Kuan, Seblewengel Lemma Abreham, Sasmira Matta, Ahmed Moen, Rituu B. Nanda, Frank K. Nyonator, Ferdous Arfina Osman, Claudia Pereira, Henry Perry, James F. Phillips, Meike Schleiff, Melissa Sherry, Chala Tesfaye Chekagn, Rita Thapa, Kebede Worku
ForewordPrefaceIntroduction: Why does Primary Health Care Matter in the 21st Century?, by David BishaiPart 1: PHC Foundations1. Primary Health Care: History, Trends, Controversies and Challenges, by Henry Perry2. Identifying Countries with Exceptionally Rapid Gains in Life Expectancy: A Quantitative Approach, by David Bishai and Carolina Cardona3. Strategies to Improve Comprehensive Primary Health Care Performance in a District, by Claudia Pereira, David Bishai, and Melissa Sherry4. Why Well-Supported Health Systems are Necessary for Vertical Programs to Succeed: Lessons from Polio Eradication, by Svea Closser5. Continuity between Comprehensive Primary Health Care and Sustainable Development Goals, by Melissa Sherry and David Bishai6. Four Principles of Community Based Primary Health Care: Support, Appreciate, Learn/Listen, Transfer (SALT), by Marlou de Rouw, Alice Kuan, Philip Forth, Rituu B. Nanda, and Luc Barriere ConstantinPart 2: Country Case Studies of PHC at Scale and the Way Forward7. Bangladesh's Health Improvement Startegy as an Example of the Alma-Ata Declaration in Action, by Taufique Joarder and Ferdous Arfina Osman8. Ethiopia: Expansion of Primary Health Care Through the Health Extension Program, by Zufan Abera Damtew, Meike Schleiff, Kebede Worku, Chala Tesfaye, Seblewengel Lemma, Onaopemipo Abiodun, Mignote Solomon Haile, Dennis Carlson, Ahmed Moen, and Henry Perry9. Health Improvement through Primary Health Care Approach: Case of Nepal, by Kedar Prasad Baral, Nadia Diamond-Smith, and Rita Thapa10. Four decades of Community-Based Primary Health Care Development in Ghana, by James F. Phillips, Fred N. Binka, John Koku Awoonor Williams, and Ayaga A. Bawah11. Sri Lanka's Health Improvements as an Example of the Implementation of the Alma-Ata Declaration, by Vinya Ariyaratne12. How Vietnam's Doi Moi Reforms Achieved Rapid Gains in Health with Comprehensive Primary Health Care, by Nguyen Thanh Huong and Hoang Khanh Chi13. Cuba's Progress on PHC since the Alma-Ata Conference, by Sasmira Matta, David Bishai, and Pedro Mas Bermejo14. Health for All in the 21st Century, by Meike Schleiff and David BishaiList of ContributorsIndex
A well-written, comprehensive overview of how primary health care developed over time and across countries.Remco van de Pas, MD, Maastricht University
