Romania’s informal payments highest in surgery

The highest level of informal payments hovering at an average of RON 608 (EUR 136) is seen in the general surgery field, reveals a new study that gauges the payments made by Romanian patients seeking treatment in both public and private healthcare institutions.

The study by Exact Cercetare si Consultanta and Link Resources, a healthcare consultancy, which was commissioned by the Aspen Institute Romania, shows that nurses are the biggest recipients of informal payments or gifts, followed by obstetricians and internists.

Patients make smaller informal payments for medical tests or check ups.

The survey, which had 1,002 respondents, notes that patients are more disappointed by public healthcare services against the private ones, mainly due to long waiting time before a check up or the behavior of medical staff.

More than 80 percent of the respondents said they trust specialized MDs, while 72 percent said they value the opinion of an MD working in a family practice – which is the main information source of a Romanian patient.

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Respondents said they more disappointed by MDs working in a private family practice versus their counterparts in the public system.

The survey, which was presented during the Bucharest Forum/Healthcare event, was carried out between October 22 – 29.

Ovidiu Posirca