How has Coronavirus Affected Healthcare Systems Around the World? Last year, I focused my research on healthcare systems around the world, however since then, the pandemic has undoubtedly changed a lot of this. With Covid 19 taking the most priority in hospitals, many patients aren’t getting the treatment that they need. So how have the best and the worst healthcare systems in the world coped with this? Why were some countries better at handling this healthcare crisis?
Finland (population approx. 5.5 million) is said to have the world’s best healthcare system and just like England, there is no cost for healthcare as it is funded by the tax system. The local governments are responsible for offering their residents healthcare services. In 2002, there were more than 19,000 doctors in Finland and life expectancy has increased throughout the years, it’s 81 years for women and 73 years for men.
The first coronavirus case in Finland was diagnosed in a tourist in a holiday resort in Lapland on the 29th January 2020. Since then, Finland has been successful in restraining the pandemic, because compared to many other countries it arrived in Finland late, which allowed early implementation of restrictive regulations and recommendations. Sierra Leone (population approx. 7.8 million) is the worst country in the world in providing healthcare to its citizens. This is mostly due to the fact that the country is still rebuilding after civil war, there is a shortage of qualified healthcare workers and a lack of funding. About 45% of the population is under 15 years old and the life expectancy is a very tragic 54 years. Furthermore, about 60% of the rural population does not have sufficient access to clean drinking water. Another huge concern to the country is the life-threatening disease malaria. The first coronavirus case in Sierra Leone was diagnosed to a 37 year old man who travelled back from France on the 16th March 2020.
