ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the experiences of local communities to offer an account of how individual and community health can be reconciled by providing an overview of community oriented approaches to health. It argues that the development of a healthy community is in itself beneficial to individual health. Social capital is based on the idea of social cohesion, which is the measure of community relations. The notion of 'community' has been debated for many years. It can be used to describe local populations and a focus for local service delivery. The precise links between deprivation and health inequality are unclear and a range of characteristics is involved including individual, geographical and social factors. In the early 1990s members of the primary care team in Dumbiedykes undertook interviews of local residents. Rapid appraisal was developed by the World Health Organization for use in developing countries.
