Quality and supervision of health care services

To ensure the quality of healthcare services provided to patients in a situation where the services are offered exclusively by private legal entities, the state established healthcare quality requirements in 2002 and created a supervisory system to monitor the activities of healthcare providers.

According to the World Health Organization, a healthcare service is of high quality if it meets professionally accepted standards, complies with the legislative and ethical principles of society, and responds to individuals’ needs and expectations. It should also ensure patient well-being and the best possible outcome, while being delivered according to the principle of achieving maximum results with optimal costs.

Responsibilities related to healthcare quality are shared between the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Health Board, the Health Insurance Fund, healthcare providers, and professional associations of healthcare workers. More information on healthcare quality and quality assurance is available on the website of the Ministry of Social Affairs (information available in Estonian).