ABSTRACT
In the early 1960s health education was made a subject of explicit government policy and since that time attention has been paid to structure and funding including training and research. A National Institute of Health Education has been set up. The Dutch health care system is composed of three sub-systems; the first tier is preventive in character, the second, mainly concerns general practitioners and the delivery of home care and the third tier involves specialists, clinics and hospitals.
Health education is delivered both within the health care system and outside it. There are many government campaigns, health education is compulsory in primary schools and emphasized in secondary schools where it is not yet obligatory. Health education is also an important element of occupational health. There is a well structured support system for the promotion of health education including a special unit within the Ministry of Health. The Dutch Health Education Centre was set up in 1981 and has proved an effective force in accumulating background knowledge and in supporting people in carrying out health education activities. Future trends suggest an emphasis on the work place, the elderly, sports and secondary schools.
The Netherlands have a surface area of 41,160 square kilometres with a population of 14,600,000 whose density is 355 people per square kilometre with an annual rate of increase of 0.4 per cent. Infant mortality rate is 8.0 per 1,000 live births with a life expectancy at birth of 76 years. The urban population is 89 per cent of the total.
