Childhood vaccination continues to be one of the most cost-effective health policy interventions. Nearly all countries or, in some cases, sub-national jurisdictions have established vaccination programmes based on their interpretation of the risks and benefits of each vaccine. Coverage of these programmes and reduction of burden of vaccine preventable diseases can be considered as a quality of care indicator. Polio, pertussis, measles and hepatitis B are taken here as examples as they represent, in timing and frequency of vaccination, the full spectrum of organisational challenges related to childhood vaccination.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and stroke each account for around 3 million deaths a year in the Asia-Pacific region, being two of the major causes of death and disability (WHO, 2014h). Additionally, both are associated with significant health, social and non-financial costs, because of the persistent disabilities suffered by many survivors. Treatment for AMI and stroke has advanced greatly over the past decade. Until the 1990s, treatment focused on prevention of complications and rehabilitation. But following the great improvements in AMI survival rates that were achieved with thrombolysis (Gil et al., 1999), clinical trials also demonstrated the clear benefits of thrombolytic treatment for ischemic stroke (e.g. Mori et al., 1992). Dedicated cardiac care and stroke units offering timely and proactive therapy achieve better survival than conservative care (Seenan et al., 2007), although studies have shown that a considerable number of patients fail to receive high-quality, evidence-based care (Eagle et al., 2005).

Breast cancer accounts for around 187 000 deaths per year in the Asia-Pacific region (WHO, 2014h). There are a number of factors that increase risk, such as age, family history, oestrogen replacement therapy, alcohol use and others. The promotion of screening mammography and self-examination has led to the detection of the disease at earlier stages. Most OECD countries have adopted breast cancer screening programmes as the most effective way for detecting the disease, although periodicity and population target groups vary.