Health Systems in Transition - Hungary - World Health Organization ...

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Health systems in transition Hungary 109
been unstable, has not been related to the health care needs of the population
and has not been based on an approved health sector development plan (State
Audit Office, 2005).
4.1.2 Infrastructure
In 2009, local governments owned 78% of all hospital beds in Hungary, almost
20% of which (15.2% of all beds) were in Budapest. Of the total number of
approved beds, university clinical departments had 9.7%, the National Institutes
of Health had 5.9% and health care institutions of other ministries had 2.5%.
In addition, 3.8% of all hospital beds were owned by churches and charities
operating hospitals with a territorial supply obligation and therefore eligible
for HIF financing (HCSO, 2010f). Private non-profit-making organizations
operate in several fields of inpatient care, the majority of beds being provided
for internal medicine, paediatrics, psychiatry and follow-up care (NHIFA, 2010).
Over the past 15 years, Hungary has followed the general European trend
of reducing the number of acute hospital beds both through real reductions and
bed reallocations to different types of services (Fig. 4.1). There were two major
waves of bed reductions – the first between 1995 and 2001 and the second in
2007 – as part of fiscal stabilization packages prompted by very high deficits.
In general, the average length of stay (Fig. 4.2) and hospital admissions rates
have also decreased since 1990, as have occupancy rates (Fig. 4.3). For more
information on trends in the mix of beds in the Hungarian health care system
see sections 5.4, 7.3.2 and 7.5.2.
Fig. 4.1
Trends in the mix of beds in the Hungarian health care system,
1990–2009 (selected years)
1990
1994
Source: HCSO, 2010f.
Long-term nursing care
1995
1996
1997
2000
2001
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Total
All acute wards
All chronic wards
Rehabilitation
Psychiatry
Acute psychiatry