(introduction...)

PUBLISHED COLLABORATIVELY BY
THE CROSS CLUSTER INITIATIVE ON HOME-BASED LONG-TERM CARE,
NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES AND MENTAL HEALTH AND
THE DEPARTMENT OF HIV/AIDS, FAMILY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH,
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

WHO Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

Community home-based care in resource-limited settings: a framework for action.

1. Home care services - organization and administration 2. Community health services -organization and administration 3. Policy making 4. Consumer participation 5. Guidelines

© World Health Organization 2002

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The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the World Health Organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement.

The mention of specific companies or of certain manufacturers' products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by the World Health Organization in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted, the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters.

The World Health Organization does not warrant that the information contained in this publication is complete and correct and shall not be liable for any damages incurred as a result of its use.

The named authors alone are responsible for the views expressed in this publication.

This document is founded on research, conceptual development, observations of practice and relevant community home-based care literature. The people who played an important role in informing this work and who were responsible for the development of this document include:

PROJECT MANAGER

Miriam Hirschfeld, Long-term and Home-based Care (CCL) Director, Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health (NMH), WHO, Geneva, Switzerland

PRINCIPAL RESEARCHER AND AUTHOR
Elizabeth Lindsey, Short-term Consultant, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland; Emeritus Professor, University of Victoria, BC, Canada

RESEARCH TEAMS
Botswana
Sheila Tlou, Eiphraim Ncube and Kyle Mudongo (University of Botswana) and Koketso Rantona and Sewa Bale (SWAABO)

Kenya
Elizabeth Ngugi, Violet Kimani, Mutuku Mwanthi and Joyce Olenja (University of Nairobi)

Thailand
Wilawan Senaratana. Wichit Srisuphun, Prayong Limtragool, Thanaruk Suwanprapisa, Chomnard Potjanamart, Pornpun Subpaiboongid and Pikul Nunthachaipun
(Faculty of Nursing, University of Chiang Mai)

Haiti
Lisa Mbele-Mbong

Cambodia
William Pigott, WHO Regional Representative, Cambodia and Pamela Messervy, Programme Management Officer, WHO, Phnom Penh

The conceptual frameworks for policy development in the first two sections of this document are based upon the work by Jenny Brodsky, Jack Habib and liana Mizrahi at the Brookdale Institute, Israel on long-term care laws in industrialized countries.

STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS

The members of the Steering Committee were responsible for reviewing and critiquing this document at intervals during its development. Their vast experience in CHBC and their willingness to critique this document provided guidance and support to the author. They include: Sandra Anderson, Senior Programme Development Advisor, UNAIDS Intercountry Team for Eastern and Southern Africa; Miriam Hirschfeld, Long-term and Home-based Care (CCL) Director, Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland; Vincent Habiyambere, Department of HIV/AIDS, Family and Community Health, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland; Janet Cornwall, SERVANTS Home and Community Based Care, Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Ruth Stark, WHO Regional Representative, Papua New Guinea; Lucy Steinitz, Catholic AIDS Action, Windhoek, Namibia; Virginia O'Dell, Care Unit, Department of HIV/AIDS, Family and Community Health, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland; and Evelyn Isaacs, WHO HIV/AIDS Care and Support Team, WHO Regional Office for Africa, Harare, Zimbabwe, Africa.

We acknowledge the role of the research respondents in Botswana, Kenya, Haiti, Cambodia and Thailand. This document would not have been possible without their willingness to share their experiences in CHBC. These respondents took time to talk with the researchers although most had poor living conditions and overwhelming caregiving responsibilities.