The deficient public health perspective in the Chilean health care system

Abstract

This reflection aims at strengthening public health teaching for undergraduate students of health care careers. Public health teaching is feeble and incomplete, especially in medical schools. However, this deficiency has not hampered the interest in post graduate training in the area. In health care careers, the academic program is heavily inclined towards clinical skills training and there are few courses devoted to teach and introduce public health concepts early in the training of health care professionals. This shortcoming can be related to some problems observed in the Chilean health care system such as the public/ private dichotomy, the driving importance of the market on health care and the preponderant reliance on hospital rather than primary health care. All these deficiencies in health care contribute to ignore the bio-psychosocial health care model.