Irish health system receives ‘average’ EU rating

A major international report has shown the Irish health system may not be the ‘sick man’ of Europe, but it does have a number of ailments, some of which need to be urgently addressed.

The Health at a Glance: Europe 2016 report shows that in many instances Ireland’s health system is performing at average, or below average, levels with signs of progress in certain areas and problems in others.

The report, compiled by the OECD and the European Commission, shows Ireland performs well compared to the EU-26 average when it comes to the proportion of patients who visited an emergency department when primary care was not available. The figures, however, relate to 2011-13.