ABSTRACT
The assessment of the health of the individual is made on clinical grounds by medical history, physical examination, laboratory tests and other special investigations. Theoretically, one could assess the health of a whole community by conducting repeatedly a detailed clinical examination of each individual. In practice, the health status of the population is assessed less directly by the collection, analysis and interpretation of data about important events that serve as indicators of the health of the community – deaths (mortality data), sickness (morbidity data) and data about the utilization of medical services. The lack of reliable data in developing countries is an important obstacle to the effective management of health care and other social services. It is necessary to develop and improve information systems which decision makers and health-care givers can use for planning, implementing and evaluating services.
