INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXTS AND MORTALITY - THE CASE OF PERU

This analysis examines the institutional context of infant mortality i n Peru using economic, social. health care, and public health measures as indicators of development and equity. Using linked data from popul ations and economic censuses, government agencies, and health surveys on twenty-four Peruvian provinces, I explore how economic development and institutional contexts influence health outcomes. Regional inequit ies based on rural population, subsistence activity, women's illiterac y, monthly income, Gross Domestic Product, medical care, and health fa cilities are compared Then a cluster analysis identifies institutional contexts that have internal similarities. These contexts are able to discriminate differences in infant mortality, My conclusion is that un derstanding regional inequities - defined in terms of economic develop ment, social institutions, and health services - leads to enhanced exp lanations of disparities in health outcomes.