Global Health
Leadership Initiatives

Primary Health Care

About Primary Health Care Center

Established in 1993, the College of Nursing Primary Health Care Center focuses on nursing leadership to advance research, education, practice, and policy in community-based health care.

Primary health care (PHC) is an approach to health care that focuses on the promotion of health and the prevention of diseases through comprehensive care collaboratively and cooperatively provided by community people and multiple health disciplines. Primary health care is interactive: community residents are empowered to be knowledgeable in health matters and to have an opportunity to participate in their health care management. Moreover, PHC addresses self-care practices for physical and mental aspects of community health as well as community social and environmental conditions. A basic goal is to ensure that PHC or essential health care is available to everyone in the community.

The implementation of PHC emphasizes several concepts:

• Accessibility of essential health services to all the population
• Maximum individual and community involvement in the planning and operation of health care services
• Emphasis on services that are preventive and supportive as well as curative
• The use of appropriate technology with local resources and government support
• The integration of health development with overall social and economic development
• Provision of culturally acceptable health activities and programs
• A focus on the health concerns of highest priorities for community residents and health system
• The use of strategies that maximize self-learning, self-determination, self-care, and self-reliance on the part of the people