In February 2025, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has published its Patient-Reported Indicator Survey (PaRIS), which measures the health outcomes and care experiences of patients in various countries.
As the OECD explains it, “by capturing the perspectives of over 107,000 people across 1,800 primary care practices in 19 countries, PaRIS provides an internationally comparable assessment of how outcomes and experiences of primary care users aged 45 years and older vary across countries and how healthcare systems deliver the care people with chronic conditions need.”
What are the results for Switzerland?
Healthcare users in Switzerland will be happy to know that the country got high scores across all categories, mostly out-performing, in terms of its health system, other OECD nations.
Specifically:
More than four out of five (82 percent) people who suffer from chronic conditions in Switzerland report good physical health, as measured by physical function, pain, and fatigue. This is well above the OECD PaRIS average of 70 percent, and the highest among participating countries.
More than nine out of ten (91 percent) of people with chronic conditions report good mental health, referring to quality of life, emotional distress, and social health. This is above the OECD PaRIS average of 83 percent.
Two-thirds (67 percent) of people with chronic conditions in Switzerland feel confident managing their own health, which is above the OECD PaRIS average of 59 percent.
Nearly all respondents (97 percent) with chronic conditions report good person-centred care focusing on patient’s needs, and experiencing good quality of care, which is the highest among participating countries and considerably above the OECD PaRIS average of 85 and 87 percent respectively.
Almost four out of five people (78 percent) with two or more chronic conditions are managed in primary care practices that offer follow-up and regular consultations of more than 15 minutes; this is 31 percent higher compared to the OECD PaRIS average of 47 percent.
More than nine out of ten people (91 percent) with three or more chronic conditions in Switzerland report that their medication was reviewed by a healthcare professional over the past 12 months; this is 16 percent higher than the OECD PaRIS average.
About 74 percent of men and 68 percent of women with chronic conditions trust Switzerland’s healthcare system. These trust levels are higher than the OECD PaRIS average for men (67 percent) and women (58 percent).
There is, however, one category where the Swiss system falls below the OECD level: only about half (55 percent) of people with chronic conditions are managed in practices that can exchange medical records electronically, slightly below the OECD PaRIS average of 57 percent.
Advertisement
What does all this data tell us?
Mostly, it confirms what many other studies have already demonstrated – namely, that though the Swiss system differs from elsewhere in Europe (see below), it excels in terms of outcomes.
This has been demonstrated by other research as well.
For instance, an earlier OECD study showed that Switzerland’s healthcare did better than the OECD average in terms of life expectancy, preventable mortality rate, wait time for doctor appointments and procedures, and access to health services.
And according to the US-based Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity (FREOPP), Switzerland has the world’s most advanced health system, out of 31 countries ranked.
What exactly does this mean?
For the purposes of this survey, FREOPP considered factors such as patients’ ability to choose a doctor and insurance company; the use of scientific and technological advances in healthcare; and the availability of new medical treatments.
READ ALSO: How is Swiss healthcare system different from the rest of Europe?
Advertisement
Steep costs
There is, however, a dark side to Swiss healthcare system: its price.
Premiums for the obligatory health insurance keep increasing each year, and while the Covid pandemic has eaten up a huge chunk of public health funds, other factors keep the costs rising as well.
Among them are longevity (people in Switzerland have a high life expectancy, which means they are using medical services and facilities longer); expensive drugs and technology; as well as unnecessary treatments and medical procedures, among other reasons.
