Standardized interventions in international health: Procrustes, where are you now?

Two opposing views on implementing interventions in international health are represented on the one hand by 'one size doesn't fit all' and on the other by the promotion of standard approaches. Successes in scaling up access to tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment and access to antiretroviral therapy provide examples of the benefits of a standardized approach to disease management. These benefits may be extended to the management of the emerging epidemic of non-communicable diseases in developing countries. An enthusiastic advocate of standardization, Procrustes (a figure in Greek mythology) went to extreme lengths but his tendencies can be a useful reminder that one size may not fit all, but does fit enough.