Health sciences education planning for California for 1980-82 is examined. The adequacy of educational programs in meeting the needs of California for professional personnel in medicine, nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, and optometry is assessed. Data on enrollments and graduation rates in these fields are updated from the 1978 plan, and similar data on the fields of osteopathy and podiatry are included. Progress in implementing recommendations from the 1978 plan is assessed, and the role of nurse practitioners in geriatric health care is examined. The most recent Health Manpower Plan and the State Health Plan are also reviewed. Various careers that are included in the generic term of allied health are identified, a classification structure for allied health is presented, and the educational and training programs in these fields are described with respect to institutional setting, enrollments, and numbers of graduates. Additionally, preventive health care, and the educational components that provide the professional personnel for prevention vis-a-vis cure in health care are briefly reviewed. Some general areas of discussion include graduate medical education, attrition in the nursing profession, programs in nurse-midwifery, and information needs for health science planning. Recommendations of the Graduate Medical Education National Advisory Committee are appended. (SW)