Sweden has a decentralised healthcare system Twenty county councils and regions and one municipality are responsible for providing their citizens with hospital, primary, psychiatric and other healthcare services. A county council tax supplemented by a government grant is the main means of financing the healthcare system. In addition, small user fees are paid at the point of use. Long-term care for the elderly is financed and organized by the municipalities. Each county council and region is governed by a political assembly, whose representatives are elected for four years in general elections. The county councils and regions are of different size. With populations between one and two million each, Stockholm, Västra Götaland and Skåne are considerably larger than the rest. Gotland is smallest, with about 60 000 inhabitants. Most of the other regions have populations between 200 000 and 300 000. Within the framework of national legislation and varying healthcare policy initiatives by the national government, the county councils and regions have substantial decision making powers and obligations to their citizens. The Swedish healthcare system is decentralised. Thus, focusing on the performance of the individual county councils and regions is a logical approach.
Such an effort would have demanded a meticulous, correct analysis of case mix at each hospital and clinic. Data quality, as well as accurate and complete reporting, is integral to ensuring that the comparison do not mislead patients. Moreover, data need to be more up-to-date and consistently reflective of the various clinics and hospitals if patients are going to make choices based on the report. Clear language and straightforward explanations are also of greater importance in that connection. Finally, many indicators in Regional Comparisons concern emergency services, for which patients cannot choose provider in the same way that elective care permits. Regional Comparisons is one of several sources of information that the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare and the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions jointly make available to the general public, media, patient associations, county councils, care providers and other organisations. The two organisations also conduct a number of projects on their own that utilise the regional comparisons of healthcare efficiency and quality based on their specific tasks and responsibilities.
Format The structure of the report has not changed significantly from previous years. The summary at the beginning highlights a few particularly noteworthy results. Indicators and Sources of Data, the next section, reviews the ways in which the form and content of the various sets of indicators have changed since the previous report. The section describes the indicator selection process and presents the sources of data on which the comparisons are based.
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QUALITY AND EFFICIENCY IN SWEDISH HEALTH CARE 2012