Comparative approach to health maintenance: definition, need, and rationale

A comparative approach has been employed in many phases of medicine, eg, epidemiology, surgery, nutrition, cancer. It has been used widely in teaching, research, and surveillance, but little attention has been paid to its application in delivery systems. Geographic and financial circumstances often create situations in which it is extremely difficult to enter the health care system or even to know when such entry is indicated. Because the comparative approach has been successful in other phases of medicine, it deserves consideration in the health maintenance phase. The comparative approach has three major components: (1) Reliance on broad principles of health maintenance, not on specifics; (2) emphasis on health maintenance, not on curative medicine; and (3) utilization of health care systems designed for nonhuman beings to bring man into the human health care system. The ways to utilize ethically and legally the expertise of other health professionals in providing entry to the health care system and in facilitating transfer of our technical knowledge to more of the general public should be explored.