Each year, the Frontier Centre compares the quality of health care services in Canada to that offered in 31 European countries. The Euro Canada Health Consumer Index measures which health care systems meet the expectations and needs of patients. One dimension of the ECHI in which Canada fared particularly poorly was waiting times for medical services. In fact, Canada was among the very worst performers in this component of the index. The following graphic illustrates Canada’s performance compared to a representative sample of 13 European countries.
Canada’s poor performance in this area is a product of our outdated and overly bureaucratic service delivery model. European countries have been able to achieve universal access without the delays which plague Canadian health care by developing delivery models that reward efficiency. For example, many European countries provide extra funding to hospitals which demonstrate themselves to be productive and successful.
Source: Euro Canada Health Consumer Index 2009
