The convergence of health system resources and health outcome in Central Europe and the Baltic region

Health system resources have increased comparatively higher in Central Europe and the Baltic region relative to the Euro Area and the OECD countries. This study investigates the tendency for health system resources and health outcomes to converge for the countries of Central Europe and the Baltic region from 2000 to 2019. The existence of convergence is tested using the β coefficient within and across the 11 countries studied. The panel result favors the existence of convergence in the three variables employed as health system resources – physician density, nurses’ density, and per capita current health expenditure. Similarly, the findings support the presence of convergence in all four variables used as health outcomes – life expectancy at birth (total), crude death per 1000 population, NCDs mortality, and infant mortality. Furthermore, at the country level, the results are heterogeneous. Evidence highlights that only three variables employed as health system resources converged in Iceland, Latvia, Norway, and Sweden. The results favor the convergence in all four variables employed as health outcomes in Poland and Russia. However, the exact opposite holds for the convergence of health outcomes in Denmark. Therefore, this calls for the need to implement sound reforms in the health systems that could translate increased health system resources into improved health outcomes.The significance of this study lies in its examination of the relationship between increasing health system resources and health outcomes in Central Europe and the Baltic region. Despite higher investments in health system resources relative to the Euro Area and OECD countries, improvements in health outcomes have not kept pace in these regions. By investigating the potential for convergence in health system resources (physician density, nurses’ density, and per capita health expenditure) and health outcomes (life expectancy, crude death rates, NCD mortality, and infant mortality) from 2000 to 2019, the study provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of these resource investments. This research highlights the critical need for targeted, context-specific health system reforms to bridge the gap between resource allocation and the improvement of health outcomes in the region.