Swiss population satisfied with healthcare

The Commonwealth Fund has a population survey conducted every three years in several countries, including Switzerland. Of the 1520 people over the age of 18 surveyed, around 60 percent believe that the Swiss healthcare system functions well to very well on the whole.

66 percent also think the quality of medical care is excellent or very good. In an international comparison, this puts Switzerland at the top. The short waiting times for doctor's visits and operations, the rapid availability of laboratory analyses and the quality of treatment all receive good ratings. In the other countries, these values are in some cases significantly lower than in Switzerland.

Good family doctors

Of those surveyed, 90 percent first turn to their family doctor or a health center when they have a health problem. In 2010, the figure was 93.5 percent. This means that Switzerland slips down a few ranks in an international comparison; in almost all other countries, the proportion has risen to well over 90 percent. A majority of 64 percent (2010: 69 percent) are very satisfied with the treatment and give the general practitioners and health centers good to excellent marks. The criteria for the rating were that the doctor knows the patient's medical history, spends enough time with the patient, involves the patient in decisions and provides comprehensible information.

If the primary care physician or the health center coordinates the treatment and provides the patient with medical support, the assessments from the patient's point of view are even better: People with such comprehensive medical care (so-called medical home) express themselves more positively about the coordination and quality of medical treatments (e.g., fewer medical errors identified by patients or greater participation in decisions regarding treatments).

90 percent of all respondents describe their own state of health as good to excellent. This puts Switzerland in the lead, along with New Zealand and Australia. 48 percent suffer from at least one chronic disease, with the proportion of those over 65 (76 percent) being significantly higher here. Around 92 percent of respondents with a chronic illness feel well informed and well cared for; a similarly large proportion express confidence that they will be able to overcome their health problems.

More visits to specialists

At the same time, more medical services were received in Switzerland: In 2010, around 44 percent of respondents said they had seen a specialist in the last two years; in 2016, the figure is a good 54 percent. The proportion of people who have seen at least two doctors in the last twelve months has also risen from 45 percent to around 57 percent. This growth in the use of healthcare services is particularly high in Switzerland compared with the other countries surveyed. Meanwhile, a majority of respondents (77 percent) believe that the amount of services provided is just right and that hardly any unnecessary examinations or treatments are performed (88 percent). On this point, primary care physicians had a different assessment in last year's survey. Half of them (51 percent) had complained that too many and unnecessary medical services were provided in Switzerland.

In recent surveys, only a few patients in Switzerland were confronted with the problem of having to forgo medical services for financial reasons. In 2010, 10 percent still did so. In 2016, it is already 23 percent who have foregone a visit to the doctor, a treatment or a medication in the last year. People up to the age of 49 and those with lower incomes are particularly affected.

Health2020 
In its health policy strategy Health2020, the Federal Council has adopted various measures to address the weaknesses in the Swiss healthcare system. A central pillar is the promotion of coordinated care, for example through the introduction of the electronic patient dossier or the strengthening of cooperation in primary care. Patient safety is also to be further strengthened thanks to national quality programs. The fourth national Health2020 conference on January 31, 2017, will also focus on the topic of prevention in healthcare.

Switzerland has participated in the Commonwealth Fund's international healthcare survey since 2010. The results of this year's international survey will be discussed at a Commonwealth Fund ministerial meeting in Washington between December 16 and 18, 2016. The Commonwealth Fund is a private, not-for-profit foundation that aims to promote well-functioning and efficient health systems with better access to health insurance and to improve the quality of services. The Swiss delegation is represented at the meeting by FOPH Director Pascal Strupler.

The 2016 International Health Policy Survey conducted by the Commonwealth Fund, New York (USA), included Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the USA, as well as Switzerland. In Switzerland, a total of 1520 people in the three major language regions of Switzerland were surveyed on behalf of the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH).

Source: BAG