Community-based health services: a vital part of Universal Health Coverage

This discussion paper explores some of the main issues around communitybased health services (CBHS). The main message emerging from the paper is the importance of planning for community-based services as a whole - a tier between primary facilities and communities - rather than as a number of piecemeal activities. Without this overview there will be gaps, duplications and inconsistencies in terms of services: opportunities to progress towards Universal Health Coverage will be missed. 

The aim of this paper is to raise issues, not to make specific recommendations about CBHS – the discussion is not yet at that stage. There are many questions which can be asked about a community-based health sub-system. Thinking about these questions can be a useful way to structure ideas about how to make progress with Universal Health Coverage.