Long waiting times, poor quality of structures, cost of the ticket and hospital assistance are the main reasons for dissatisfaction for Italians with respect to the NHS. This was revealed by the Eurispes Italia 2011 Report, according to which 61.4% of the interviewees expressed a negative opinion on the NHS, a level of dissatisfaction that increased by 5.1%, with particular reference to the inhabitants of the Islands (70.7%), of South (58.5%) and North East (58.2%). The survey also shows that the number of beds in residential and semi-residential structures for assistance to the elderly, the physically and mentally disabled, the terminally ill and psychiatric is 3.88 for every 1000 inhabitants. A number below the average of other European countries such as France, Germany and Great Britain. According to the report, the reception of the sick is unbalanced on hospitals, which causes overcrowding and lower efficiency. The Regions with above-average values for the number of beds in care facilities are the Autonomous Province of Trento (8.75), Veneto (8.19) and Lombardy (7.86), while in Regions such as Molise (0.24), Sicily (0.60) and Campania (0.55), accommodation is nil. Finally, the number of doctors and nurses per 100,000 inhabitants is 414 and 617 respectively. The former are more present in Liguria, Lazio and Emilia Romagna. Nurses are more numerous in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, in Liguria and in the Autonomous Province of Trento.
DoctorNews – January 31, 2011
