Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It conducts and supports basic and applied research to reduce the burden of human illness and dysfunction from environmental causes by, defining how environmental exposures, genetic susceptibility, and age interact to affect an individual's health. It was established in 1969.

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

An operating division of the US Department of Health and Human Services. It is concerned with the overall planning, promoting, and administering of programs pertaining to health and medical research. Until 1995, it was an agency of the United States PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE.

Substances or energies, for example heat or light, which when introduced into the air, water, or land threaten life or health of individuals or ECOSYSTEMS.

An agency in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government. It was created as an independent regulatory agency responsible for the implementation of federal laws designed to protect the environment. Its mission is to protect human health and the ENVIRONMENT.

The study of existing genetic knowledge, and the generation of new genetic data, to understand and thus avoid DRUG TOXICITY and adverse effects from toxic substances from the environment.

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.

Elements, compounds, mixtures, or solutions that are considered severely harmful to human health and the environment. They include substances that are toxic, corrosive, flammable, or explosive.

The exposure to potentially harmful chemical, physical, or biological agents in the environment or to environmental factors that may include ionizing radiation, pathogenic organisms, or toxic chemicals.

Tests to experimentally measure the tumor-producing/cancer cell-producing potency of an agent by administering the agent (e.g., benzanthracenes) and observing the quantity of tumors or the cell transformation developed over a given period of time. The carcinogenicity value is usually measured as milligrams of agent administered per tumor developed. Though this test differs from the DNA-repair and bacterial microsome MUTAGENICITY TESTS, researchers often attempt to correlate the finding of carcinogenicity values and mutagenicity values.

Organized efforts by communities or organizations to improve the health and well-being of the child.

Critical and exhaustive investigation or experimentation, having for its aim the discovery of new facts and their correct interpretation, the revision of accepted conclusions, theories, or laws in the light of newly discovered facts, or the practical application of such new or revised conclusions, theories, or laws. (Webster, 3d ed)

The study of natural phenomena by observation, measurement, and experimentation.

Study of the principles and practices of library administration and services.

Medical specialty concerned with environmental factors that may impinge upon human disease, and development of methods for the detection, prevention, and control of environmentally related disease.

Specialists in the management of a library or the services rendered by a library, bringing professional skills to administration, organization of material and personnel, interpretation of bibliothecal rules, the development and maintenance of the library's collection, and the provision of information services.

A component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH concerned with research, overall planning, promoting, and administering mental health programs and research. It was established in 1949.

Services offered to the library user. They include reference and circulation.

Organizations representing specialized fields which are accepted as authoritative; may be non-governmental, university or an independent research organization, e.g., National Academy of Sciences, Brookings Institution, etc.

The qualitative or quantitative estimation of the likelihood of adverse effects that may result from exposure to specified health hazards or from the absence of beneficial influences. (Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1988)

An institute of the CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION which is responsible for assuring safe and healthful working conditions and for developing standards of safety and health. Research activities are carried out pertinent to these goals.

Contamination of the air, bodies of water, or land with substances that are harmful to human health and the environment.

Collection and analysis of data pertaining to operations of a particular library, library system, or group of independent libraries, with recommendations for improvement and/or ordered plans for further development.

An agency of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH concerned with overall planning, promoting, and administering programs pertaining to advancement of medical and related sciences. Major activities of this institute include the collection, dissemination, and exchange of information important to the progress of medicine and health, research in medical informatics and support for medical library development.

Architecture, exterior and interior design, and construction of facilities other than hospitals, e.g., dental schools, medical schools, ambulatory care clinics, and specified units of health care facilities. The concept also includes architecture, design, and construction of specialized contained, controlled, or closed research environments including those of space labs and stations.

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

Financial support of research activities.

Waste products which threaten life, health, or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of, or otherwise managed.

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

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It conducts and supports basic and applied research to better understand, treat, and ultimately prevent infectious, immunologic, and allergic diseases. It was established in 1948.

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It supports and conducts research, both basic and clinical, on the normal and diseases nervous system. It was established in 1950.

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. Through basic and clinical biomedical research and training, it conducts and supports research into the nature of the aging process and diseases associated with the later stages of life. The Institute was established in 1974.

Development of a library collection, including the determination and coordination of selection policy, assessment of needs of users and potential users, collection use studies, collection evaluation, identification of collection needs, selection of materials, planning for resource sharing, collection maintenance and weeding, and budgeting.

The use of automatic machines or processing devices in libraries. The automation may be applied to library administrative activities, office procedures, and delivery of library services to users.

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

Planning, organizing, staffing, direction, and control of libraries.

The monitoring of the level of toxins, chemical pollutants, microbial contaminants, or other harmful substances in the environment (soil, air, and water), workplace, or in the bodies of people and animals present in that environment.

Information centers primarily serving the needs of hospital medical staff and sometimes also providing patient education and other services.

Professions or other business activities directed to the cure and prevention of disease. For occupations of medical personnel who are not physicians but who are working in the fields of medical technology, physical therapy, etc., ALLIED HEALTH OCCUPATIONS is available.

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

Occasions to commemorate an event or occasions designated for a specific purpose.

Management of public health organizations or agencies.

Research that involves the application of the natural sciences, especially biology and physiology, to medicine.

Organized services to provide information on any questions an individual might have using databases and other sources. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

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

Time period from 1901 through 2000 of the common era.

Educational institutions providing facilities for teaching and research and authorized to grant academic degrees.

Studies beyond the bachelor's degree at an institution having graduate programs for the purpose of preparing for entrance into a specific field, and obtaining a higher degree.

The interactions between members of a community and representatives of the institutions within that community.

Acquisition, organization, and preparation of library materials for use, including selection, weeding, cataloging, classification, and preservation.

A computerized biomedical bibliographic storage and retrieval system operated by the NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE. MEDLARS stands for Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System, which was first introduced in 1964 and evolved into an online system in 1971 called MEDLINE (MEDLARS Online). As other online databases were developed, MEDLARS became the name of the entire NLM information system while MEDLINE became the name of the premier database. MEDLARS was used to produce the former printed Cumulated Index Medicus, and the printed monthly Index Medicus, until that publication ceased in December 2004.

The field of knowledge, theory, and technology dealing with the collection of facts and figures, and the processes and methods involved in their manipulation, storage, dissemination, publication, and retrieval. It includes the fields of COMMUNICATION; PUBLISHING; LIBRARY SCIENCE; and informatics.

The principles of proper conduct concerning the rights and duties of the professional, relations with patients or consumers and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the professional and interpersonal relations with patient or consumer families. (From Stedman, 25th ed)

The enactment of laws and ordinances and their regulation by official organs of a nation, state, or other legislative organization. It refers also to health-related laws and regulations in general or for which there is no specific heading.

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

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

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

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It was initially established to investigate the broad aspects of human development as a means of understanding developmental disabilities, including mental retardation, and the events that occur during pregnancy. It now conducts and supports research on all stages of human development. It was established in 1962.

All of the divisions of the natural sciences dealing with the various aspects of the phenomena of life and vital processes. The concept includes anatomy and physiology, biochemistry and biophysics, and the biology of animals, plants, and microorganisms. It should be differentiated from BIOLOGY, one of its subdivisions, concerned specifically with the origin and life processes of living organisms.

Components of a national health care system which administer specific services, e.g., national health insurance.

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.

Individuals enrolled in a school or formal educational program in the health occupations.

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 interaction of two or more persons or organizations directed toward a common goal which is mutually beneficial. An act or instance of working or acting together for a common purpose or benefit, i.e., joint action. (From Random House Dictionary Unabridged, 2d ed)

A course or method of action selected, usually by a government, from among alternatives to guide and determine present and future decisions.

The state wherein the person is well adjusted.

Procedures, strategies, and theories of planning.

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

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

Disciplines concerned with the interrelationships of individuals in a social environment including social organizations and institutions. Includes Sociology and Anthropology.

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

Medical complexes consisting of medical school, hospitals, clinics, libraries, administrative facilities, etc.

Knowledge, attitudes, and associated behaviors which pertain to health-related topics such as PATHOLOGIC PROCESSES or diseases, their prevention, and treatment. This term refers to non-health workers and health workers (HEALTH PERSONNEL).

Community or individual involvement in the decision-making process.

Integrated set of files, procedures, and equipment for the storage, manipulation, and retrieval of information.

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

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

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. Through basic and clinical biomedical research and training, it conducts and supports research with the objective of cancer prevention, early stage identification and elimination. This Institute was established in 1937.

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It conducts and supports basic and applied research for a national program in diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolic diseases; digestive diseases and nutrition; and kidney, urologic, and hematologic diseases. It was established in 1948.

A plan for collecting and utilizing data so that desired information can be obtained with sufficient precision or so that an hypothesis can be tested properly.

The study of ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION and the toxic effects of ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTANTS on the ECOSYSTEM. The term was coined by Truhaut in 1969.

Schools which offer training in the area of health.

The development and establishment of environmental conditions favorable to the health of the public.

Conferences, conventions or formal meetings usually attended by delegates representing a special field of interest.

The promotion and maintenance of physical and mental health in the work environment.

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.

Organizations composed of members with common interests and whose professions may be similar.

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)

A publication issued at stated, more or less regular, intervals.

The planning of the furnishings and decorations of an architectural interior.

The purposes, missions, and goals of an individual organization or its units, established through administrative processes. It includes an organization's long-range plans and administrative philosophy.

A course of study offered by an educational institution.

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)

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It supports a comprehensive research portfolio that focuses on the biological, social, behavioral and neuroscientific bases of drug abuse on the body and brain as well as its causes, prevention, and treatment. NIDA, NIAAA, and NIMH were created as coequal institutes within the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration in 1974. It was established within the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH in 1992.

The moral obligations governing the conduct of research. Used for discussions of research ethics as a general topic.

The interaction of persons or groups of persons representing various nations in the pursuit of a common goal or interest.

The state of society as it exists or in flux. While it usually refers to society as a whole in a specified geographical or political region, it is applicable also to restricted strata of a society.

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

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 process of formulating, improving, and expanding educational, managerial, or service-oriented work plans (excluding computer program development).

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

Systems where the input data enter the computer directly from the point of origin (usually a terminal or workstation) and/or in which output data are transmitted directly to that terminal point of origin. (Sippl, Computer Dictionary, 4th ed)

Systematic gathering of data for a particular purpose from various sources, including questionnaires, interviews, observation, existing records, and electronic devices. The process is usually preliminary to statistical analysis of the data.

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.

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It conducts and supports research program related to diseases of the heart, blood vessels, lung, and blood; blood resources; and SLEEP WAKE DISORDERS. From 1948 until October 10, 1969, it was known as the National Heart Institute. From June 25, 1976, it was the National Heart and Lung Institute. Since October 1997, the NHLBI has also had administrative responsibility for the NIH Woman's Health Initiative.

Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of medicine.

Libraries in which a major proportion of the resources are available in machine-readable format, rather than on paper or MICROFORM.

Identifies, for study and analysis, important issues and problems that relate to health and medicine. The Institute initiates and conducts studies of national policy and planning for health care and health-related education and research; it also responds to requests from the federal government and other agencies for studies and advice.

Contamination of bodies of water (such as LAKES; RIVERS; SEAS; and GROUNDWATER.)

Communication, in the sense of cross-fertilization of ideas, involving two or more academic disciplines (such as the disciplines that comprise the cross-disciplinary field of bioethics, including the health and biological sciences, the humanities, and the social sciences and law). Also includes problems in communication stemming from differences in patterns of language usage in different academic or medical disciplines.

A constituent organization of the DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES concerned with protecting and improving the health of the nation.

Disposal, processing, controlling, recycling, and reusing the solid, liquid, and gaseous wastes of plants, animals, humans, and other organisms. It includes control within a closed ecological system to maintain a habitable environment.

Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.

A group of pathological conditions characterized by sudden, non-convulsive loss of neurological function due to BRAIN ISCHEMIA or INTRACRANIAL HEMORRHAGES. Stroke is classified by the type of tissue NECROSIS, such as the anatomic location, vasculature involved, etiology, age of the affected individual, and hemorrhagic vs. non-hemorrhagic nature. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp777-810)

Spread and adoption of inventions and techniques from one geographic area to another, from one discipline to another, or from one sector of the economy to another. For example, improvements in medical equipment may be transferred from industrial countries to developing countries, advances arising from aerospace engineering may be applied to equipment for persons with disabilities, and innovations in science arising from government research are made available to private enterprise.

Educational programs designed to inform individuals of recent advances in their particular field of interest. They do not lead to any formal advanced standing.

Health services required by a population or community as well as the health services that the population or community is able and willing to pay for.

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)

An interactive process whereby members of a community are concerned for the equality and rights of all.

Studies designed to assess the efficacy of programs. They may include the evaluation of cost-effectiveness, the extent to which objectives are met, or impact.

The status of health in urban populations.

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

The external elements and conditions which surround, influence, and affect the life and development of an organism or population.

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

A branch of internal medicine concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

Chemicals used to destroy pests of any sort. The concept includes fungicides (FUNGICIDES, INDUSTRIAL); INSECTICIDES; RODENTICIDES; etc.

Use for general articles concerning medical education.

A specialized agency of the United Nations designed as a coordinating authority on international health work; its aim is to promote the attainment of the highest possible level of health by all peoples.

Federal, state, or local government organized methods of financial assistance.

Collections of systematically acquired and organized information resources, and usually providing assistance to users. (ERIC Thesaurus, http://www.eric.ed.gov/ accessed 2/1/2008)

Recommendations for directing health planning functions and policies. These may be mandated by PL93-641 and issued by the Department of Health and Human Services for use by state and local planning agencies.

Evaluation undertaken to assess the results or consequences of management and procedures used in combating disease in order to determine the efficacy, effectiveness, safety, and practicability of these interventions in individual cases or series.

Medical specialty concerned with the promotion and maintenance of the physical and mental health of employees in occupational settings.

Elements of limited time intervals, contributing to particular results or situations.

The amounts spent by individuals, groups, nations, or private or public organizations for total health care and/or its various components. These amounts may or may not be equivalent to the actual costs (HEALTH CARE COSTS) and may or may not be shared among the patient, insurers, and/or employers.

Studies in which the presence or absence of disease or other health-related variables are determined in each member of the study population or in a representative sample at one particular time. This contrasts with LONGITUDINAL STUDIES which are followed over a period of time.

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.

A cabinet department in the Executive Branch of the United States Government concerned with administering those agencies and offices having programs pertaining to health and human services.

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.

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.

"The business or profession of the commercial production and issuance of literature" (Webster's 3d). It includes the publisher, publication processes, editing and editors. Production may be by conventional printing methods or by electronic publishing.

Research aimed at assessing the quality and effectiveness of health care as measured by the attainment of a specified end result or outcome. Measures include parameters such as improved health, lowered morbidity or mortality, and improvement of abnormal states (such as elevated blood pressure).

The status of health in rural populations.

An aspect of personal behavior or lifestyle, environmental exposure, or inborn or inherited characteristic, which, on the basis of epidemiologic evidence, is known to be associated with a health-related condition considered important to prevent.

Stipends or grants-in-aid granted by foundations or institutions to individuals for study.

The science concerned with the detection, chemical composition, and biological action of toxic substances or poisons and the treatment and prevention of toxic manifestations.

The optimal state of the mouth and normal functioning of the organs of the mouth without evidence of disease.

The prediction or projection of the nature of future problems or existing conditions based upon the extrapolation or interpretation of existing scientific data or by the application of scientific methodology.

Collaborative process of research involving researchers and community representatives.

Attitudes of personnel toward their patients, other professionals, toward the medical care system, etc.

Planning for the equitable allocation, apportionment, or distribution of available health resources.

Use for general articles concerning nursing education.

A medical specialty primarily concerned with prevention of disease (PRIMARY PREVENTION) and the promotion and preservation of health in the individual.

Time period from 2001 through 2100 of the common era.

A system containing any combination of computers, computer terminals, printers, audio or visual display devices, or telephones interconnected by telecommunications equipment or cables: used to transmit or receive information. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Groups set up to advise governmental bodies, societies, or other institutions on policy. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The contamination of indoor air.

Component of the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. It seeks to improve oral, dental and craniofacial health through research, research training, and the dissemination of health information by conducting and supporting basic and clinical research. It was established in 1948 as the National Institute of Dental Research and re-named in 1998 as the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

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

Variation in rates of disease occurrence and disabilities between population groups defined by socioeconomic characteristics such as age, ethnicity, economic resources, or gender and populations identified geographically or similar measures.

The exposure to potentially harmful chemical, physical, or biological agents that occurs as a result of one's occupation.

Discussion of lists of works, documents or other publications, usually with some relationship between them, e.g., by a given author, on a given subject, or published in a given place, and differing from a catalog in that its contents are restricted to holdings of a single collection, library, or group of libraries. (from The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

The seeking and acceptance by patients of health service.

The practice of nursing in the work environment.

Studies in which subsets of a defined population are identified. These groups may or may not be exposed to factors hypothesized to influence the probability of the occurrence of a particular disease or other outcome. Cohorts are defined populations which, as a whole, are followed in an attempt to determine distinguishing subgroup characteristics.

A subgroup having special characteristics within a larger group, often bound together by special ties which distinguish it from the larger group.

An infant during the first month after birth.

Any substance in the air which could, if present in high enough concentration, harm humans, animals, vegetation or material. Substances include GASES; PARTICULATE MATTER; and volatile ORGANIC CHEMICALS.

Organized services to provide mental health care.

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

Computer systems capable of assembling, storing, manipulating, and displaying geographically referenced information, i.e. data identified according to their locations.

Combination of procedures, methods, and tools by which a policy, program, or project may be judged as to its potential effects on the health of a population, and the distribution of those effects within the population.

Collection, analysis, and interpretation of data about the frequency, distribution, and consequences of disease or health conditions, for use in the planning, implementing, and evaluating public health programs.

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

Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.

The largest country in North America, comprising 10 provinces and three territories. Its capital is Ottawa.

Social and economic factors that characterize the individual or group within the social structure.

The presence in food of harmful, unpalatable, or otherwise objectionable foreign substances, e.g. chemicals, microorganisms or diluents, before, during, or after processing or storage.

Books in the field of medicine intended primarily for consultation.

The function of directing or controlling the actions or attitudes of an individual or group with more or less willing acquiescence of the followers.

Means or process of supplying water (as for a community) usually including reservoirs, tunnels, and pipelines and often the watershed from which the water is ultimately drawn. (Webster, 3d ed)

The concept covering the physical and mental conditions of women.

The total number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. It is differentiated from INCIDENCE, which refers to the number of new cases in the population at a given time.

The circulation or wide dispersal of information.

The teaching staff and members of the administrative staff having academic rank in an educational institution.

Levels within a diagnostic group which are established by various measurement criteria applied to the seriousness of a patient's disorder.

Observation of a population for a sufficient number of persons over a sufficient number of years to generate incidence or mortality rates subsequent to the selection of the study group.

The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.

The broad dissemination of new ideas, procedures, techniques, materials, and devices and the degree to which these are accepted and used.

Health services, public or private, in rural areas. The services include the promotion of health and the delivery of health care.

The process of minimizing risk to an organization by developing systems to identify and analyze potential hazards to prevent accidents, injuries, and other adverse occurrences, and by attempting to handle events and incidents which do occur in such a manner that their effect and cost are minimized. Effective risk management has its greatest benefits in application to insurance in order to avert or minimize financial liability. (From Slee & Slee: Health care terms, 2d ed)