ZAGREB, April 24 (Hina) - Croatia's health care sector should be raised to a level that can help people to be healthy and enjoy secure old age, said the First Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic during the presentation of a new project
of health care reforms last Wednesday. This reform called "New Direction" is financially backed by the World Bank and the first pilot project is to be launched in Koprivnica-Krizevci County (northern Croatia) this week. If the pilot project produces satisfactory results concerning the organisation of health care in that county and services to patients, it will be used as a national model. Granic accentuated the necessity of changes in this sector so that health care can be affordable to everybody and that the biggest problem of the current public health system - a lack of money - can be solved. He added that health should not be viewed as expenses but
ZAGREB, April 24 (Hina) - Croatia's health care sector should be
raised to a level that can help people to be healthy and enjoy secure
old age, said the First Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic during
the presentation of a new project of health care reforms last
Wednesday.
This reform called "New Direction" is financially backed by the
World Bank and the first pilot project is to be launched in
Koprivnica-Krizevci County (northern Croatia) this week. If the
pilot project produces satisfactory results concerning the
organisation of health care in that county and services to
patients, it will be used as a national model.
Granic accentuated the necessity of changes in this sector so that
health care can be affordable to everybody and that the biggest
problem of the current public health system - a lack of money - can
be solved.
He added that health should not be viewed as expenses but as a pre-
condition for economic growth and all of this also requires reforms
in other sectors. That is why the Government has started
elaborating strategies for economic progress.
Health Minister Ana Stavljenic-Rukavina said concrete goals of the
project are to modernise hospitals technologically, transform some
of them into infirmary for stay over day, introduce telemedicine
and strengthen primary care with the launch of group practice and
broadening of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
She pointed to the importance of introduction of a modern system of
prevention and promotion of health, and added that it was necessary
to lessen the share of public health in the Gross National Product,
which is currently nine percent.
The project's director Stipe Oreskovic cited three important
factors for the success of the project.
Those are that there is political will for changes, vision and
strategy of the new system as well as technical knowledge and
ability that Croatia possesses while many other countries in
transitions do not have, Oreskovic added.
Present at the promotion of the new project in the Croatian Health
Ministry were World Bank officials Sandor Sipos and Philip
O'Keffee.
(hina) ms