Reprofiling human resources: transferring care from hospital to community

It is generally accepted that there must be a shift from expensive acute care services, which often only serve a limited population, to a method of community-based care that is supported by an appropriate mix of primary care providers and specialists. This article identifies constraints to the successful implementation of models of primary care and community-based approaches to the delivery of health services. The importance of health human resource planning and policies is emphasized and suggestions are made on approaches that tend to match human resource development with community-based delivery.