State hospitals struggle with inefficiency

An audit of five state hospitals revealed they have too many doctors yet still pay them extensively for overtime. Their output is not increasing (the number of hospitalizations grew by 5% over five years), although their costs surged by 60%. Despite an adequate number of doctors, almost no surgeries are performed after 3 p.m., partly due to a shortage of nurses. Based on the audit, Minister Kamil Šaško drafted an action plan to streamline hospitals, which he intends to present today. The debts of state hospitals have already exceeded €1bn, and Slovakia faces a potential EU fine for late invoice payments.

(dennikN.sk)