With 707 of the maximum 1,000 points Croatia has made significant headway among former Yugoslav countries, while Slovenia is one step ahead, with 710 points.
Despite the fact that per capita spending on health is more modest than in Western European countries, the Croatian health system applies very advanced and expensive procedures such as kidney transplants, and Croatia is at the very top in Europe with close to 50 transplants per one million inhabitants, according to the EHCI.
The top ranked country according to the EHCI is the Netherlands, with 916 points, followed by Switzerland, with 894 points, and Norway, with 854 points. At the bottom of the ranking are Serbia (554), Bulgaria (530), Romania (527), Albania (524), Poland (523) and Montenegro (282).
The EHCI, established in 2005, compares the performance of health systems in 35 countries. It analyses 48 indicators, including the right of patients to information, availability of medical services, treatment outcome, waiting lists, prevention, the consumption of drugs and their availability, etc.