Abstract:
EDITOR—The theme issue on Health in South Asia in April addressed problems and hopes for
health but neglected prevention. South Asia has a quarter of the world's population. The
optimal means to improve health is public health, which means that new public health
workers need to be recruited and educated. The global 25 year increase in life expectancy is
almost all due to prevention, not clinical medicine. In South Asia, Sri Lanka shows the
importance of public health and prevention with impressive achievements at low cost.
