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Injuries have now become a recognizable public health problem in developing countries. However, no definite policies regarding their surveillance and control are yet available in most of these countries. This paper, using Ghana as a prototype, examines the need for policy and action which has been accentuated in recent times by public outcry. The paper also provides some recommendations to solve this problem: the urgent need to initiate programs such as needs assessment, the establishment of a surveillance system for injuries at various levels of health services, creation of public awareness and provision of health education, and the institution of simple first-aid measures. Specific policies regarding injuries from motor vehicle accidents and fires are also given.

Providing primary care for the medically underserved is an international problem. In the developing world the problem is accentuated by the disparity between resources and needs. Although during the past few decades much has been accomplished worldwide to improve primary care, medical educators have not adequately responded to the challenge of preparing students to participate in community health services, education, and research. This paper describes a medical school program from the Department of Community Health, School of Medical Sciences, Ghana. It is a program designed to prepare medical students for primary care by making community health a curriculum component of all three years of medical education. The program has potential for replication in the industrial as well as the developing world.