Modelos complementarios de atención: un componente excluido en la reforma de los sistemas de salud / Complementary health care models: a neglected complonent in the health care systems reform

ABSTRACT

Complementary health care models represent a neglected and scarcely studied area of the health services structure. Within them a myriad of medical therapies of various origins are included. Lately, their importance has grown by means of the increase in demand for such services, both in industrialized and developing countries. It is urgent to reinforce research in the area aiming at understanding the processes through which the population demands these services and the processes through which complementary practitioners are able to maintain their presence in a market environment where the forces of supply and demand are significant. The context created by the health services reform should be used to review the therapeutic value of these models, to promote its regulation, and to amplify the availability of therapeutic options for the population