[Continuing education in health in Latin America].

The article considers continuing education as instruction to update knowledge and provide personal training. The first part defines concepts, terms, education, learning, socialization, critical awareness, and personal training. The underlying principles of continuing education are spelled out: Education is a continuing process; every social group is educational; continuing education is comprehensive; education is a dynamic process; education is an orderly process of thought; the education system is integrative in character; and education is an innovative process. The second section examines the relationship between work and continuing education, and views work as a social institution that completes the education process. A consideration of continuing education, health services, and the purposes of continuing education completes this part. The third part compares the new continuing education with the traditional variety. The former centers on the student, learning, and work, and the latter on the teacher and verbalization. The fourth part discusses methods, research, and evaluation and the existing kinds of continuing education in relation to their objectives. Continuing education in Latin America is the subject of the fifth part, which summarizes the disparate purposes, methods, and concepts of 155 continuing education program in the region. It is concluded that continuing education is a means, not an end, the end being to meet the public's health needs.