Which child health and non child health indicators are appropriate for programming health services at a district level?

The aim of this study was to identify which indicators measuring social and health status of children are most suitable for planning district health services in European countries. A search was performed for documentation regarding child health indicators currently used in Italy, the European community, in the United Kingdom and Canada. Nine indicators were selected and for each indicator, a reference value was identified by consulting data bases and reports, information regarding usefulness of the indicator is specified, and intervention strategies for improving quality of health care in the specific area are described.