In the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the definition of “partner” includes “one of two or more persons who play together in a game against an opposing side”. In this book, Hill and colleagues attempt to outline how public health and primary care can play together. This is not a new challenge, as the authors acknowledge. However, although the benefits of closer partnership between public health and primary care (in its widest sense) have been acknowledged, the practicalities appear to have thwarted attempts to fully develop it.

Does this book help to illuminate how these two complementary juggernauts can come together? The short answer (disappointingly) is not really. The back page suggests the book is aimed at those in public health who want …