Delivering Health Services Efficiently for Serbian’s : Synthesis Report
This review aims to provide evidence-based policy options to improve the performance of the Serbian health care system. The current rise of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and rapid aging in Serbia will put significant budgetary pressures on the he...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2020
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/109911580180014887/Delivering-Health-Services-Efficiently-for-Serbian-s-Synthesis-Report http://hdl.handle.net/10986/33309 |
| Summary: | This review aims to provide
evidence-based policy options to improve the performance of
the Serbian health care system. The current rise of
noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and rapid aging in Serbia
will put significant budgetary pressures on the health care
system and, in the absence of structural reforms, will lead
to increasing costs. According to the latest estimates,
about 17 percent of the population in Serbia is over 65
years old, compared with 11 percent two decades ago. This
proportion is expected to reach 25 percent in 2050. Meeting
these rising demands in a limited fiscal space and a
relatively costly public delivery system requires the
government to enhance efficiency in public spending and
service provision while ensuring access to quality health
care. Overall, achievements in the health sector have been
mixed. Serbia has achieved significant health gains in terms
of life expectancy and basic health indicators, but these
are still far below the European Union (EU) average, and
marked differences are apparent across the country’s
districts and population groups, such as the Roma. This
health care system review also carried out a productivity
analysis of health care providers in the public sector. The
findings show that both outpatient and inpatient health
facilities vary greatly in terms of productivity and that
room exists for efficiency gains. There were 139 public
primary health care (PHC) facilities included in the
analysis. The gaps in cost per visit and visits per staff
between the least productive and the most productive groups
of facilities were wide, indicating an opportunity for
optimization and cost savings. There is also large variation
in productivity within and across types of hospitals. More
productive hospitals also have better quality indicators and
other outcomes. On average, the most productive hospitals
had a higher occupancy rate, less staff per bed, and a
shorter length of stay. The productive group also had lower
acute myocardial infarction and stroke readmission rates and
lower C-section rates. |
|---|