When you think about the 10 countries with the worst healthcare systems, you have to wonder what it is that makes them so bad. The truth is that healthcare systems can go wrong in a number of ways. Some are common mistakes while others are colossal errors in judgement. Take a look at some of the ways that healthcare systems can go wrong and then you can imagine the combination of blunders that helped the list of the top 10 worst earn their spots.
Funding
This is a rather obvious way in which healthcare can go wrong. If healthcare does not have enough funding then it cannot operate to its full potential. Keeping people healthy costs money.
The World Health Organization recommends that countries put at least 5% of government spending towards healthcare. Some countries put significantly less than this to this arena and their healthcare systems suffer for it. But do not think that money is the only thing necessary for a healthcare system to work. Some countries put a lot more than 5% toward healthcare and do not have much to show for it.
Functionality
This is a broad and ill-defined category. In this instance, it encompasses how well a country’s healthcare system uses what it has. This means how well funds, equipment, personnel, and such are utilized. This is a huge factor for determining the quality of a healthcare system. So much can go wrong in any of these areas that each one is a potential landmine. Poorly managed resources can ruin any business and healthcare is a business.
Personnel
Not every country has enough trained personnel to adequately staff their medical facilities. This means that either medical facilities remain understaffed or they are staffed with personnel who lack the necessary training to provide quality care to patients. While some training may be better than none, this is hardly a recipe for the best healthcare system possible.
Bad Decisions
Perhaps the biggest factor that can lower the quality of a healthcare system is a few bad decisions. These decisions are often made in an attempt to improve healthcare systems or to deal with some troubles, financial or otherwise. But they end up making everything worse.
Some countries have tried to make up for shortages of trained medical personnel by employing those without sufficient training. Others have shut down medical facilities outside of major metropolitan centers to force everyone to head into major cities whenever they needed medical care. Some countries have even unofficially banned diagnoses of certain communicable diseases. Not all acts were so clearly headed toward disaster but bad decisions do a lot to damage healthcare.
Top Ten Worst Healthcare Systems
These are the worst healthcare systems around. These countries have all done different things to earn their place on this list but none of them are places that you want to be if you need healthcare services.
Myanmar
Central African Republic
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Nigeria
Liberia
Malawi
Mozambique
Lesotho
Zambia
Angola
Tom R. Rheinecker blogs about how to obtain an online masters of nursing.
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