Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Hypertension Volume 2012, Article ID 584041, 7 pages doi:10.1155/2012/584041 Research Article Gaps in Capacity in Primary Care in Low-Resource Settings for Implementation of Essential Noncommunicable Disease Interventions S. Mendis, 1 Igbal Al Bashir, 2 Lanka Dissanayake, 3 Cherian Varghese, 4 Ibtihal Fadhil, 5 Esha Marhe, 6 Boureima Sambo, 7 Firdosi Mehta, 3 Hind Elsayad, 8 Idrisa Sow, 9 Maltie Algoe, 10 Herbert Tennakoon, 11 Lai Die Truong, 12 Le Thi Tuyet Lan, 13 Dismond Huiuinato, 14 Neelamni Hewageegana, 15 Naiema A. W. Fahal, 16 Goitom Mebrhatu, 17 Gado Tshering, 18 and Oleg Chestnov 19 1 Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland 2 Public Health Institute, Ministry of Health, Khartoum, Sudan 3 World Health Organization, Colombo, Sri Lanka 4 WPRO, World Health Organization, Manila, Philippines 5 EMRO, World Health Organization, Cairo, Egypt 6 PAHO-WHO, Paramaribo, Suriname 7 AFRO, World Health Organization, Brazzaville, Democratic Republic of Congo 8 Ministry of Health, Damascus, Syria 9 World Health Organization, Asmara, Eritrea 10 Ministry of Health, Paramaribo, Suriname 11 World Health Organization, Thimphu, Bhutan 12 World Health Organization, Hanoi, Vietnam 13 General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 14 Ministry of Health, Cotonou, Benin 15 Ministry of Health, Colombo, Sri Lanka 16 NCD Directorate, Ministry of Health, Khartoum, Sudan 17 Ministry of Health, Asmara, Eritrea 18 Ministry of Health, Thimphu, Bhutan 19 World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland Correspondence should be addressed to S. Mendis, mendiss@who.int Received 20 September 2012; Revised 23 October 2012; Accepted 24 October 2012 Academic Editor: Eoin O’Brien Copyright © 2012 S. Mendis et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Objective. The objective was to evaluate the capacity of primary care (PC) facilities to implement basic interventions for prevention and management of major noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Methods. A cross- sectional survey was done in eight low- and middle-income countries (Benin, Bhutan, Eritrea, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, and Vietnam) in 90 PC facilities randomly selected. The survey included questions on the availability of human resources, equipment, infrastructure, medicines, utilization of services, financing, medical information, and referral systems. Results and Conclusions. Major deficits were identified in health financing, access to basic technologies and medicines, medical information systems, and the health workforce. The study has provided the foundation for strengthening PC to address noncommunicable diseases. There are important implications of the findings of this study for all low- and middle-income countries as capacity of PC is fundamental for equitable prevention and control of NCDs.