This chapter starts with a broad indicator of avoidable mortality, providing a general assessment of the effectiveness of public health and health care systems in reducing premature deaths. In 2015, more than 1.2 million people in EU countries died prematurely from diseases and injuries that could potentially have been avoided through more effective public health policies or health care. The main causes of avoidable mortality include ischaemic heart diseases, lung cancer and accidents.
Vaccine-preventable diseases have resurged in some parts of Europe in recent years, highlighting the importance of assuring effective vaccination coverage across all European countries. In some EU countries, at least 10% of children were not vaccinated against infectious diseases such as measles and hepatitis B in 2017, increasing the risk that these communicable diseases will spread.
The quality of acute care in hospital for life-threatening conditions has generally improved over the past decade. Mortality rates following a hospital admission for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) has reduced by 30% on average between 2005 and 2015, and mortality rates following an admission for stroke has also come down by over 20%. Yet, wide disparities in the quality of acute care persist not only between countries but also between hospitals within each country.
Health systems in Europe have also made progress in tackling cancer through the implementation of population-based screening programmes and the provision of effective and timely cancer care, as reflected by increased survival following diagnosis and reduced cancer mortality in most countries.
Health care needs to be provided by putting patients at the centre. While data on patient-reported experience remain limited, the available data indicate that patients generally report positive experiences from their contacts with doctors.