Modernization and rural health in Mexico: the case of the Tepalcatepec Commission

Mexican policymakers instituted community-based health programs in the 1940s and 1950s to encourage rural participation in state-sponsored health and economic development initiatives. The Tepalcatepec Commission (1947-1961) united previously independent government programs into a multi-tiered collaboration that addressed regional development through national, state, and local networks. While national policymakers and state officials designed plans to improve agricultural production, promote industrialization, utilize the area's natural resources, and expand communication channels, health workers established unprecedented relationships with indigenous community members by introducing the Commission's projects in culturally relevant ways. They used their on-the-ground experiences to learn local languages, customs, and beliefs, and incorporated these factors into their health education and disease treatment campaigns. The result serves as an example of short-term cooperative relationships between healthcare workers and indigenous groups that not only reduced the major health risks in the area, but also paved the way for collective economic development.