Health issues in remote and rural areas

In March 1996 a conference on the theme health issues in remote and rural areas was held in Inverness. Sponsored by the Scottish Office, Highland Health Board and the Department of General Practice and Primary Care, University of Aberdeen, participants included representatives from the Scottish Office, the seven Health Boards with areas designated as remote and rural, the Health Education Board for Scotland, The Royal College of General Practitioners, voluntary sector organisations and academics. In this paper we introduce the theme and outline the debates detailed in the following three papers.