Healthcare is a broad term used to describe the various systems we as humans rely upon to help us maintain our personal health through the treatment (or prevention) of illness, injury, disease, and other physical or mental impairments.
Healthcare encompasses medical doctors and hospitals and dentistry, psychology, nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and more.
Nationwide healthcare systems take many forms, and access to healthcare varies across countries, municipalities, and individuals and is primarily influenced by economic and social factors.
Access to healthcare is seen as a fundamental human right by many people and governments. People who lack quality healthcare are often left with a poorer quality of life and lower life expectancy than people who enjoy a stable, accessible, and affordable healthcare system. Countries with efficient and effective health care systems have overall better health outcomes than countries whose health care systems lag.
The quality of healthcare is determined by considering a wide range of factors, including the care process (preventative care measures, safe care, coordinated care, and engagement and patient preferences), access (affordability and timeliness), administrative efficiency, equity, and healthcare outcomes (population health, mortality amenable to healthcare, and disease-specific health outcomes).
Identifying a top-notch health care system is fairly easy. While health care systems are complex, several factors can be used to determine which systems are the most effective. The systems in play are incredibly complex, and there is significant debate about which factors are most important and what a perfect system looks like. But healthcare is vitally important, so health-focused organizations keep searching for that elusive best system.
What countries have the best healthcare in the world?
CEOWorld Magazine's Health Care Index "is a statistical analysis of the overall quality of the health care system, including health care infrastructure; health care professionals (doctors, nursing staff, and other health workers) competencies; cost (USD p.a.per capita); quality medicine availability, and government readiness."
Each country is given a score for each of the above factors and then a total score out of 100. According to this index, the ten countries with the best health care are: