No. 25 (1993): Perspectives on health in Central America

With the publication of the magazine "Perspectivas de la Salud en Centroamérica", the Central American Institute of Public Administration (ICAP), strengthens an informative and multiplying space of topics in the field of health services management and innovation of care models, mentioning some concrete actions carried out by ICAP, as a response to the regional problems in the field of health. In this sense, an impact approach is included, such as the application of the precepts of total quality to health services, as an administrative strategy for the success of organizations in the sector, in the search for alternatives to improve health investment and competitiveness.

The conception of positive and productive health has, as a prerequisite, its promotion from an integral and social perspective, an approach shared by the authors in the works presented in this document. This effort is framed within the area of work of ICAP Health Management, and constitutes one more input for the development of applied administrative research and the transfer of experiences, mainly among Central American countries.

As an example of health promotion with socio-environmental projection, one of the authors addresses the need to mobilize health services to adult workplaces. The feasibility of combining the actions of the State, private enterprise and the individual in the prevention of lethal diseases such as cardiovascular disease is also discussed. The concern of the region's political leaders in designing and implementing health promotion policies, expressed in the different forums and meetings of the Central American Health Sector, is highlighted.

It should be noted that the works agree on the strategic need to train professionals in charge of health services in health management, so that they can develop skills that will enable them to maneuver the tangible and intangible forces of their respective organizations, to make them more effective, efficient and effective. All the above components are systematized in proposals for new models of care, as an alternative to adapt health systems to the new socio-political and economic contexts; including privatization in the provision of services, a path which, despite its political and social risk, is still an answer for certain social strata. All these approaches are supported by the demographic, social and economic indicators of the region.

The purpose of this contribution is to stimulate scholars in the region to participate in the discussion on the health perspectives of our countries.