Slovakia

Country profile

Slovakia is a republic in Eastern Europe with a population counting a little less than 5,5 million. The country has gone through large reforms since the disintegration of Czechoslovakia in 1993. In 2004 Slovakia became part of the EU, and in 2009 joined the Eurozone. Slovakia has an advanced economy with one of the fastest growth rates in the EU and the OECD. The country also scores relatively well on equality measures.

Slovakia is structured into eight administrative regions and 79 districts. The regions are relatively autonomous entities, and there are considerable regional differences in wealth between the western and the eastern regions. Slovakia has a state funded healthcare system available to all citizens, and governed by the Ministry of health. The system ranks relatively low on quality and efficiency measures, and many hospitals run with debt. Private healthcare is also available, although usage is limited. The Public Health Authority carries out the monitoring of the health status of the population.

Policy responses

Health inequalities started to be addressed by politicians in Slovakia in 2000, when the State Health Policy Concept stated health equity as a basic moral principal. The Ministry of Health’s 2006 “National Health Promotion Programme” explicitly contained the overall aims to create health-promoting conditions for the entire population, and to reduce health inequalities. However, the situation changed in 2007, when the document was revised and no longer directly addressed the issue. Currently, the issue of health inequalities is only implicitly addressed by politicians, and falls within the broader efforts of the government to improve equity overall. In addition, with respect to vulnerable groups, focus is usually directed at the Roma population.

Representatives from several sectors have influenced the overall policy response, which has also been strongly influenced by regional-level advocacy. Recently a new method of cooperation has been adopted, which focuses on a more open and horizontal approach and is based on working groups involving stakeholders from different sectors. The new method can be described mainly as a triangular collaboration between politicians, health professionals and researchers.

An overview of policy responses addressing health inequalities in can be found in our Policy Database.

Good practices

Key actors

Please find below an overview of key actors in Slovakia working on health inequality issues:

• Ministry of Health

• Slovak Public Health Association (SAVEZ)

• Public Health Authority of Slovak Republic

• Faculty of Health and Social Work, University of Trnava

• Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University

• The Kosice Institute of Society and Health (KISH)

• Centre for Work and Family Studies
  

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Key resources

Please find below an overview of relevant documents addressing health inequality issues in Slovakia. Further publications can be found in our Publications Database.

• 2009/10 HBSC National Report for Slovakia (2011)

• 2005/06 HBSC National Report for Slovakia (2009)

• Health and Morbidity in the Accession Countries Country Report (2006)

• Socioeconomic factors, ethnicity and alcohol-related mortality in regions in Slovakia. What might a tree analysis add to our understanding? (2011)

• Parental support and adolescents' health in the context of parental employment status (2011)

• National Strategy Reports on Social Protection and Social Inclusion 2008-2010

• Reduction of Health Inequalities in the Roma Community

• Social Determinants of Health in the Slovak Republic: A Case Study (2007)

• Long-term Concept of Housing for Marginalized Groups of the Population

Are you aware of any other key resources that should be added to this list?
Please let us know!