"In this paper, we discuss some theoretical and practical aspects of effectiveness and efficiency in health care. After defining those concepts, we go on to list some health services that, in practice, are considered ineffective, and to examine the solutions being considered to remedy the situation"--Introduction.

This is one of a series of vignettes designed to provide a statistical portrait of seniors in Canada. These first 20 vignettes include data such as numbers of seniors in various age groups, geographic distribution, demographics, home ownership, housing, employment, life expectancy, health, and income.