Non-profit organizations concerned with various aspects of health, e.g., education, promotion, treatment, services, etc.

A method of examining and setting levels of payments.

Adverse or favorable selection bias exhibited by insurers or enrollees resulting in disproportionate enrollment of certain groups of people.

Insurance providing coverage of medical, surgical, or hospital care in general or for which there is no specific heading.

Management of public health organizations or agencies.

Branch of medicine concerned with the prevention and control of disease and disability, and the promotion of physical and mental health of the population on the international, national, state, or municipal level.

Public or private organizations that provide, either directly or through arrangements with other organizations, home health services in the patient's home. (Hospital Administration Terminology, 2d ed)

Health planning and resources development agencies which function in each health service area of the United States (PL 93-641).

Administrative units of government responsible for policy making and management of governmental activities.

The level of governmental organization and function below that of the national or country-wide government.

The level of health of the individual, group, or population as subjectively assessed by the individual or by more objective measures.

The activities and endeavors of the public health services in a community on any level.

The concept concerned with all aspects of providing and distributing health services to a patient population.

Decisions, usually developed by government policymakers, for determining present and future objectives pertaining to the health care system.

The interactions between representatives of institutions, agencies, or organizations.

Agencies established under PL93-641 to coordinate, conduct, and implement state health planning activities. Two primary responsibilities are the preparation of an annual State Health Plan and giving assistance to the Statewide Health Coordinating Council.

Smallest political subdivisions within a country at which general governmental functions are carried-out.

Planning for needed health and/or welfare services and facilities.

Programs in which participation is not required.

Encouraging consumer behaviors most likely to optimize health potentials (physical and psychosocial) through health information, preventive programs, and access to medical care.

The term "United States" in a medical context often refers to the country where a patient or study participant resides, and is not a medical term per se, but relevant for epidemiological studies, healthcare policies, and understanding differences in disease prevalence, treatment patterns, and health outcomes across various geographic locations.

A systematic collection of factual data pertaining to health and disease in a human population within a given geographic area.

Voluntary activity without external compulsion.

The systematic application of information and computer sciences to public health practice, research, and learning.

An agency of the UNITED STATES PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE that conducts and supports programs for the prevention and control of disease and provides consultation and assistance to health departments and other countries.

Innovation and improvement of the health care system by reappraisal, amendment of services, and removal of faults and abuses in providing and distributing health services to patients. It includes a re-alignment of health services and health insurance to maximum demographic elements (the unemployed, indigent, uninsured, elderly, inner cities, rural areas) with reference to coverage, hospitalization, pricing and cost containment, insurers' and employers' costs, pre-existing medical conditions, prescribed drugs, equipment, and services.

Statistical measures of utilization and other aspects of the provision of health care services including hospitalization and ambulatory care.

The degree to which individuals are inhibited or facilitated in their ability to gain entry to and to receive care and services from the health care system. Factors influencing this ability include geographic, architectural, transportational, and financial considerations, among others.

The science of controlling or modifying those conditions, influences, or forces surrounding man which relate to promoting, establishing, and maintaining health.

The integration of epidemiologic, sociological, economic, and other analytic sciences in the study of health services. Health services research is usually concerned with relationships between need, demand, supply, use, and outcome of health services. The aim of the research is evaluation, particularly in terms of structure, process, output, and outcome. (From Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed)

The state wherein the person is well adjusted.

Financial resources provided for activities related to health planning and development.

Preferentially rated health-related activities or functions to be used in establishing health planning goals. This may refer specifically to PL93-641.

Ongoing scrutiny of a population (general population, study population, target population, etc.), generally using methods distinguished by their practicability, uniformity, and frequently their rapidity, rather than by complete accuracy.

State plans prepared by the State Health Planning and Development Agencies which are made up from plans submitted by the Health Systems Agencies and subject to review and revision by the Statewide Health Coordinating Council.

Education that increases the awareness and favorably influences the attitudes and knowledge relating to the improvement of health on a personal or community basis.

The state of the organism when it functions optimally without evidence of disease.

Procedures outlined for the care of casualties and the maintenance of services in disasters.

Community health and NURSING SERVICES providing coordinated multiple services to the patient at the patient's homes. These home-care services are provided by a visiting nurse, home health agencies, HOSPITALS, or organized community groups using professional staff for care delivery. It differs from HOME NURSING which is provided by non-professionals.

The decision process by which individuals, groups or institutions establish policies pertaining to plans, programs or procedures.

Public attitudes toward health, disease, and the medical care system.

A nursing specialty concerned with promoting and protecting the health of populations, using knowledge from nursing, social, and public health sciences to develop local, regional, state, and national health policy and research. It is population-focused and community-oriented, aimed at health promotion and disease prevention through educational, diagnostic, and preventive programs.

Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of public health.

Statements of goals for the delivery of health services pertaining to the Health Systems Agency service area, established under PL 93-641, and consistent with national guidelines for health planning.

Care which provides integrated, accessible health care services by clinicians who are accountable for addressing a large majority of personal health care needs, developing a sustained partnership with patients, and practicing in the context of family and community. (JAMA 1995;273(3):192)

The levels of excellence which characterize the health service or health care provided based on accepted standards of quality.

Behaviors expressed by individuals to protect, maintain or promote their health status. For example, proper diet, and appropriate exercise are activities perceived to influence health status. Life style is closely associated with health behavior and factors influencing life style are socioeconomic, educational, and cultural.

Diagnostic, therapeutic and preventive health services provided for individuals in the community.

The temporal sequence of events that have occurred.

The provision of expert assistance in developing health planning programs, plans as technical materials, etc., as requested by Health Systems Agencies or other health planning organizations.

Planning that has the goals of improving health, improving accessibility to health services, and promoting efficiency in the provision of services and resources on a comprehensive basis for a whole community. (From Facts on File Dictionary of Health Care Management, 1988, p299)

The promotion and support of consumers' rights and interests.

Services for the diagnosis and treatment of disease and the maintenance of health.

Activities concerned with governmental policies, functions, etc.

Services designed for HEALTH PROMOTION and prevention of disease.

Men and women working in the provision of health services, whether as individual practitioners or employees of health institutions and programs, whether or not professionally trained, and whether or not subject to public regulation. (From A Discursive Dictionary of Health Care, 1976)

The concept pertaining to the health status of inhabitants of the world.

Field of medicine concerned with the determination of causes, incidence, and characteristic behavior of disease outbreaks affecting human populations. It includes the interrelationships of host, agent, and environment as related to the distribution and control of disease.

The use of biological agents in TERRORISM. This includes the malevolent use of BACTERIA; VIRUSES; or other BIOLOGICAL TOXINS against people, ANIMALS; or PLANTS.