Does Healthcare Deliver? Results from the Patient‑Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS): Czechia
Table of contents
The OECD Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS) is a groundbreaking initiative that fills a critical gap in health data by measuring the health outcomes and care experiences of people. This is an essential piece of information still lacking: the views of those directly concerned by health services – the patients – about their experience with the healthcare system and the outcomes as reported by them. 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.
As the global population of people living with chronic conditions continues to grow, the need for healthcare systems to adapt to their needs has never been more urgent. PaRIS plays a crucial role in informing this shift by offering data that supports the reorganisation of healthcare around the care experiences and health outcomes that matter most to people. Unlike disease‑specific assessments, PaRIS takes a broader approach, measuring how healthcare impacts people’s lives across various dimensions. This comprehensive perspective has the potential to revolutionise the way we assess the performance of healthcare systems on a global scale.
PaRIS findings emphasise the need for more people‑centred and co‑ordinated care, especially for the 80% of primary care users aged 45 years and older that live with at least one chronic condition and the 50% that live with multiple (two or more) chronic conditions. Targeted policies are essential to address inequalities, enhance care co‑ordination, and build trust in healthcare systems. Encouraging patient involvement in care decisions and fostering strong relationships with healthcare professionals can lead to better health outcomes, greater trust in the system, and increased confidence in managing their own health. At the same time, a well-staffed healthcare workforce and primary care practices organised around people’s needs are key to achieving improved patient outcomes and experiences.
This country note leverages the main findings of the publication, Does Healthcare Deliver: Results from the Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS), to provide a focused assessment for Czechia. Drawing on the analysis of the ten key patient-reported outcome and experience measures used in the survey (Table 1), it explores findings in the Czech context and compares them to the OECD PaRIS average. The OECD PaRIS average is the simple average of the 17 OECD member countries participating in PaRIS.
More than seven out of ten (72%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good physical health, as measured by physical function, pain, and fatigue. This is slightly above the OECD PaRIS average of 70%.
Nearly nine out of ten (87%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good mental health, which refers to quality of life, emotional distress, and social health. This is above the OECD PaRIS average of 83%.
Nearly all people with chronic conditions (96%) in Czechia report experiencing good quality of care, which is significantly above the OECD PaRIS average of 87%. Nine out of ten (90%) people in Czechia report good person-centred care, care focusing on patient’s needs, which is above the OECD PaRIS average of 87%.
More than half (54%) of people with chronic conditions in Czechia trust their healthcare system, which is 8 percentage points below the OECD PaRIS average of 62%.
Almost a quarter of the people (24%) with two or more chronic conditions in Czechia are managed in primary care practices that offer follow-up and regular consultations of more than 15 minutes; about half of the OECD PaRIS average of 47%.
Three out of four people with two or more chronic conditions (75%) in Czechia report being with the same primary care professional for more than five years; this is 17 percentage points higher than the OECD PaRIS.
One-third (33%) of people with chronic conditions reporting confidence in using health information from the internet, compared to the OECD PaRIS average of 19% (range of 5‑34%).
Nearly all (95%) patients are managed in primary care practices that report being well-prepared to co‑ordinate care, which is far above the OECD PaRIS average of 56%. Conversely, 6% of patients are managed in practices that can exchange medical records electronically, which is lower than the OECD PaRIS average of 57%.
In Czechia people with chronic conditions have better experiences of good quality of healthcare and care co‑ordination, compared to the OECD PaRIS average. While more people with chronic conditions report good social functioning, health outcomes are around the OECD PaRIS average (Chapter 2). This assessment is based on the 10 key patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) – physical health, mental health, social functioning, well-being and general health and patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) – confidence to self-manage, experienced co‑ordination of care, experienced person-centred care, experienced quality of care and trust in healthcare system (Figure 1).
In Czechia, people living with chronic conditions are more likely to have good health outcomes compared other countries in PaRIS (Figure 1):
More than seven out of ten (72%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good physical health, as measured by physical function, pain, and fatigue. This is slightly above the OECD PaRIS average of 70% but 10 percentage points below the highest-performing country (82%).
Nearly nine out of ten (87%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good mental health, which refers to quality of life, emotional distress, and social health. This is above the OECD PaRIS average of 83% and only 6 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (93%).
More than four out of five (88%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good social functioning, which measures how well people carry out their usual social activities and roles. This is above the OECD PaRIS average of 83% and only 5 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (93%).
Nearly three‑quarters (72%) of people with chronic conditions in Czechia report positive well-being, which reflects mood, vitality, and fulfilment. This is slightly above the OECD PaRIS average of 71% and 8 percentage points below the highest-performing country (80%).
Nearly two‑thirds (63%) of people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good general health, which is slightly below the OECD PaRIS average of 66% but a considerable 30 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (93%).
In Czechia, people living with chronic conditions are more likely to have positive care experiences compared other countries in PaRIS (Figure 1):
More than two‑thirds (68%) of people with chronic conditions in Czechia feel confident managing their own health, which is well above the OECD PaRIS average of 59% but 24 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (92%).
Seven out of ten (70%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good care co‑ordination, which is well above the OECD PaRIS average of 59% but 11 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (81%).
Nine out of ten (90%) people with chronic conditions in Czechia report good person-centred care, care focusing on patient’s needs, which is above the OECD PaRIS average of 87% and only 7 percentage points lower than the highest-performing country (97%).
Nearly all people with chronic conditions (96%) in Czechia report experiencing good quality of care, which is significantly above the OECD PaRIS average of 87% and close to the highest-performing country (97%).
More than half (54%) of people with chronic conditions in Czechia trust their healthcare system, which is 8 percentage points below the OECD PaRIS average of 62%.
Source: See Chapter 2 for more details.
People living with multiple chronic conditions report lower levels of physical and mental health, well-being and social functioning compared to those who live with one chronic condition (Chapter 3). This pattern is consistent with the OECD PaRIS average, yet Czechia scores slightly better than the OECD PaRIS average in most health outcomes for people with multiple chronic conditions. Specifically:
In Czechia, people with three or more chronic conditions are less likely to report good health compared to those with two chronic conditions. This pattern is consistent with other countries’ results.
People living with multiple chronic conditions in Czechia have poorer physical health compared to those living with only one chronic condition with an 8‑point difference, a pattern consistent with the OECD PaRIS average. The physical health scores for people with one, two, or three or more chronic conditions in Czechia are comparable to the OECD PaRIS average (Figure 2). Notwithstanding, people with three or more chronic conditions in Czechia report a physical health score below the good-fair cutoff point (42), similar to the OECD PaRIS average.
Similarly, Czechia performs comparable to the OECD PaRIS average regarding the mental health of people living with one, two, and three or more chronic conditions. People with multiple chronic conditions in Czechia report poorer mental health than those with one chronic condition with a 5‑point difference, around the OECD PaRIS average (Figure 3).
Like in most other countries, people with multiple chronic conditions in Czechia less often report good social functioning than people with one chronic condition (Figure 4). While 93% of people with one chronic condition in Czechia have good social functioning, this goes down to 81% of people with three or more chronic conditions. Nonetheless, this is still 6 percentage points above the OECD PaRIS average (75%).
Primary care consultation features associated with higher levels of experienced quality care are related to time, both time‑scheduled for regular, follow-up consultations, and length of relationship with the same primary care professional (Chapter 3). The role of staff other than physicians supporting the management of people with chronic conditions also plays a role in improving healthcare delivery for people with multiple chronic conditions (Chapter 3). Systematic medication reviews in people with multiple chronic conditions can enhance medication safety, efficacy and co‑ordination.
Czechia performs comparable to the OECD PaRIS average in most of these primary care features (Figure 5). Czechia’s proportion of people with practices that report consultation times of more than 15 minutes is lower than OECD PaRIS, yet the proportion of people that have been with the same healthcare professional for more than five years is higher than the OECD PaRIS:
Almost a quarter of the people (24%) with two or more chronic conditions in Czechia are managed in primary care practices that offer follow-up and regular consultations of more than 15 minutes; about half of the OECD PaRIS average of 47%.
In Czechia, more than four out of five people (86%) with two or more chronic conditions are managed in primary care practices where non-physician staff is involved in chronic disease management; this is close to the OECD PaRIS average of 83%.
More than four out of five people (87%) with three or more chronic conditions in Czechia report that their medication was reviewed by a healthcare professional over the past 12 months; this is 12 percentage points higher than the OECD PaRIS average of 75%.
Three out of four people with two or more chronic conditions (75%) in Czechia report being with the same primary care professional for more than five years; this is 17 percentage points higher than the OECD PaRIS.
People‑centred care, healthcare systems addressing the needs of people, is an essential indicator of the quality and performance of healthcare systems and primary care practices (Chapter 4). PaRIS data show that a people‑centred approach that prioritises strong patient engagement and effective care co‑ordination, is associated with enhanced health outcomes and patient experiences. This approach is particularly beneficial in managing chronic conditions, as it empowers patients to actively participate in decisions about their health.
On several indicators of people‑centred care, Czechia demonstrates a mixed performance compared to the OECD PaRIS average (Figure 6):
Around 68% of people with chronic conditions in Czechia receive enough support to manage their own health, which is above the OECD PaRIS average of 63%.
Czechia excels in digital health literacy, with 33% of people with chronic conditions reporting confidence in using health information from the internet, compared to the OECD PaRIS average of 19% (range of 5‑34%).
Nearly all (95%) people with chronic conditions are managed in primary care practices that report being well-prepared to co‑ordinate care, which is far above the OECD PaRIS average of 56%.
Conversely, only 6% of people with chronic conditions are managed in practices that can exchange medical records electronically, which is substantially lower than the OECD PaRIS average of 57%.
These results highlight Czechia’s strong performance in care co‑ordination and digital health literacy but underscore significant challenges in adopting electronic medical record systems in primary care practices.
Among people with chronic conditions, there are differences in well-being and trust in the healthcare systems across genders in Czechia, both indicators being lower for women (Figure 7 and Figure 8).
The gender gap in well-being in Czechia is comparable to the OECD PaRIS average (5 points). This gender gap mirrors results for other countries, and Czechia performs similar to the OECD PaRIS average in terms of well-being for both men and women.
While 63% of men with chronic conditions in Czechia have trust in healthcare, only 48% of women with chronic conditions have trust in healthcare. These results for trust are below the OECD PaRIS average for men (67%) and women (58%) with chronic conditions.
The gender gap in trust in Czechia (15 percentage points) is the largest among the OECD PaRIS countries and above the OECD PaRIS average gap (9 percentage points).
Like in other OECD countries, people with chronic conditions and higher incomes in Czechia report higher well-being and trust in the healthcare system (Figure 9 and Figure 10):
Across OECD PaRIS countries, people with chronic conditions and higher incomes report better well-being than those with lower incomes (7 points difference). Czechia well-being levels across income groups are comparable to the OECD PaRIS average, although slightly higher for people with high income.
In Czechia, among people living with chronic conditions, almost seven out of ten people (65%) with higher incomes trust the healthcare system, compared to 48% of people with lower incomes. The trust levels in the healthcare system across income groups are similar to the OECD PaRIS average for high (70%) and low (59%) income groups.
The gap in trust between high- and low-income groups in Czechia is the largest among the OECD PaRIS countries but not statistically significant.
PaRIS at a glance
PaRIS contains information on patient-reported outcomes and experience measures as well as health behaviours and capabilities, sociodemographic characteristics from patients and primary care practice characteristics information from healthcare providers. The data collection took place in 2023‑24 and first results were released in the publication, Does Healthcare Deliver: Results from the Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS).
Results span 107 011 primary care users (aged 45 years and older) and 1 816 primary care practices in 19 countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czechia, France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, the United States and Wales (United Kingdom). All results in this country note are age-sex standardised to adjust for the different demographic profiles of the countries. In Figure 1, highest (lowest) represents the highest (lowest) values found for each indicator among 17 PaRIS countries. In Italy and the United States, eligibility criteria for patient participation differed from the guidelines, therefore, these countries are not included in this figure. For detailed information on national sampling procedures and other methodological details, see Chapter 7 of the report.
Results for Czechia are based on 4 136 patients and 110 primary care practices. Patients were sampled by probability sampling from the registry of participating practices. Primary care practices were sampled from the National registry of healthcare providers.
In Czechia, primary care practices responded to the questionnaire online. Patients responded to the questionnaire online and via paper-and-pencil surveys.
This work is published under the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Member countries of the OECD.
This document, as well as any data and map included herein, are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area.
The full book is available in English: OECD (2025), Does Healthcare Deliver?: Results from the Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS), OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/c8af05a5-en.
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