References

1. ^ Deutscher Kaffeeverband (2001-05-04). "Kaffee-Text 1/99" (in German) (PDF). Archived from the original on 2008-02-29. http://web.archive.org/web/20080229002700/http://www.kaffeeverband.de/pdf/kt1-99.pdf. Retrieved 2007-12-14.

2. ^ In Germany about 118 l of beer, 20 l of wine, 4 l of sparkling wine and 6 l of distilled beverages are consumed per person per year.^{[citation needed]}

3. ^ ^{a b} "Drug." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1), Random House, Inc., via dictionary.com. Retrieved on 20 September 2007.

4. ^ ^{a b c} "Drug." The American Heritage Science Dictionary, Houghton Mifflin Company, via dictionary.com. Retrieved on 20 September 2007.

5. ^ ^{a b} "Drug." Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Inc., via dictionary.com. Retrieved on 20 September 2007.

6. ^ Harper, Douglas. "drug". Online Etymology Dictionary. http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=drug.

7. ^ "Glossary of MHRA terms - P". MHRA. http://www.mhra.gov.uk/SearchHelp/Glossary/GlossaryP. Retrieved 2008-11-05.

8. ^ According to the statistic of the Food and Agriculture Organization the production quantity in 2006 of coffee was 7.8 million tonnes and of tobacco was 6.7 million tonnes.

9. ^ Lingeman, Drugs from A-Z A Dictionary, Penguin ISBN 0-7139-0136-5

10. ^ "?". http://www.nursingtimes.net/nursing-practice-clinical-research/the-administration-of-medicine/288560.article.

Health care

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This article is about the provision of medical care. For other uses, see Health care (disambiguation).

Health care (or healthcare) is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers. It refers to the work done in providing primary care, secondary care and tertiary care, as well as in public health.

Access to health care varies across countries, groups and individuals, largely influenced by social and economic conditions as well as the health policies in place. Countries and jurisdictions have different policies and plans in relation to the personal and population-based health care goals within their societies. Health care systems are organizations established to meet the health needs of target populations. Their exact configuration varies from country to country. In some countries and jurisdictions, health care planning is distributed among market participants, whereas in others planning is made more centrally among governments or other coordinating bodies. In all cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), a well-functioning health care system requires a robust financing mechanism; a well-trained and adequately-paid workforce; reliable information on which to base decisions and policies; and well maintained facilities and logistics to deliver quality medicines and technologies.^[1]

Health care can form a significant part of a country's economy. In 2008, the health care industry consumed an average of 9.0 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) across the most developed OECD countries.^[2] The United States (16.0%), France (11.2%), and Switzerland (10.7%) were the top three spenders.

Health care is conventionally regarded as an important determinant in promoting the general health and well-being of people around the world. An example of this is the worldwide eradication of smallpox in 1980—declared by the WHO as the first disease in human history to be completely eliminated by deliberate health care interventions.^[3]