Belgrade, 28th August 2011
Serbian Parents Network organized a pilot research on corruption in healthcare as part of the campaign “For Health – Together against Corruption!” conducted by Serbian Parents Network and Civic Initiative “Mother Courage” under the sponsorship of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Research has been conducted on a sample of 421 subjects, 87% of which were the direct beneficiaries of healthcare services in institutions dealing with reproductive health of women, while 13% were members of their families or friends of the beneficiaries. Goal of the research was to establish the preliminary data on frequency of corruption and the level of presence of so called hidden forms of corruption that do not imply the apparent requests for, or offering of bribe, and also to provide an insight into the ways the corruption takes place within the institutions of reproductive healthcare in Serbia. Answers to questions in the online survey express the attitudes of healthcare beneficiaries on corruption, but also offer insight into the reactions of the beneficiaries in situations when they are faced with corruption.
The results of research are devastating: every second subject has or have had the experience of corruption in healthcare institutions; one quarter of the subjects has been directly asked for money, while the half of them was asked indirectly; nearly half of the subjects has been forwarded from the state owned institutions to private clinics to execute procedures or examinations that are covered by the public health insurance; the majority of subjects opted for additional paying of services due to fear of the poor treatment by doctors or medical personnel or to shorten the waiting for a certain intervention; cca 40% of subject has not been aware that “treating” the medical personnel was a form of corruption; more than half of the subjects has not been acquainted with their patients’ rights and duties of doctors and personnel in healthcare institutions.
With the project “For Health – Together against Corruption!”, Serbian Parents Network wishes to strengthen the healthcare beneficiaries to be able to recognize various forms or corruption, but also to raise level of awareness in both individuals and competent institution and organizations of their own responsibilities in fight against corruption. Execution of adequate and efficient government campaign and education of healthcare beneficiaries about the mechanisms for protection against corruption, patients’ rights and means of their execution, would result in lowering of the general tolerance of corruption, which would further lead to rising of service quality in the system of mandatory health insurance that is in effect in Serbia.
