Starting with the assumption that the schools of public health can and should be major promoters of primary health care but that they have not fully utilized their potential, the paper reviews the different interpretations of primary health care and their implications for the recruitment policies, educational objectives, teaching methods and research orientation of the schools. Four interpretations (primary health care as a set of activities; as a level of care; as a strategy of organizing health services; and as a philosophy permeating the entire health care system) are identified. It is suggested that most industrialized countries already have a primary medical care system which has to be transformed into primary health care. A blueprint for this transformation is outlined. Many of the changes included in the blueprint are related to the concept of primary health care as a strategy. Schools of public health can play a major role in implementing the necessary strategic changes and in training their implementers. The training of actual primary care providers for leadership; increased emphasis on management in the curricula; and reorientation of research towards primary health care are underlined as particularly important elements in the new role of the schools of public health.