No. 78: The Uses of Health Systems Research 

Health systems research is concerned with the strengthening of health care and involves studies of its sources, organization, and accomplishment. As part of the worldwide efforts to promote primary health care, such research has become urgent and important. Investigating concerning health care were originally focused on problems encountered in government health services but since it became apparent that health depends to a large extent on variables outside the health services, it has become necessary to study the health system as a whole.
In order to illustrate the uses of health system research, this publication presents a spectrum of research approaches, each of which is valid in certain circumstances. The main aim is to provide and understanding of the range of possible options in general approaches to help in the choice of appropriate methods on investigation and to encourage tha realization that research can be done in any work setting.