Community-oriented primary care (COPC) is an approach to health care which combines the principles and skills of public health and family practice. It offers participants an action-oriented framework for working together on health needs at practice level. In 1992, the King's Fund, in association with other organisations, initiated a pilot programme on four sites in the UK. This book describes an evaluation of the programme. It begins by looking at the relationship between general practice and public health, and outlines the history of COPC. It then considers the policy contexts into which COPC has been introduced in the UK. Having made clear the rationale for the pilot project, the King's Fund programme is then described. The results are then given. The impact of the workshops is described, the sites, practices and their projects are detailed, and an attempt is made to assess the costs and cost-effectiveness of the projects. The final chapters look at lessons learned, successes, failures and the future development of COPC.