Health care reform goals are to reduce costs and increase access while main
taining quality of care. A potentially effective avenue for achieving these
difficult goals is to activate the untapped potential of consumers in mana
ging their own health care. This study focuses on three Northwest communiti
es and examines the prevalence of the use of self-care resources and the co
rrelates of use. A random sample of households was surveyed using a mail-ou
t questionnaire. The findings indicated that the use of self-care resources
was high in the three community populations. Consulting a self-care book w
as the most commonly used resource, followed by telephone advice nurses. Co
mmunities do vary in their level of self-care resource use. Understanding t
his variability may help communities to expand the use of such resources an
d lessen the demand for formal health care services. Suggestions for future
studies are discussed.