Does the Bulgarian Health Care System Need a Health Ombudsman?

Abstract

Background: The Office of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria (ORB) is an independent constitutional body elected by Bulgarian Parliament in 2005. It serves to protect the rights of all citizens, including the rights of patients, children, people with disabilities, minorities, foreigners, etc. Bulgarian healthcare users complain when they feel that the healthcare system (HCS) has failed their needs or they have been recipients of an inappropriate treatment. Aim: The aim of the present study was to analyze the structure and dynamics of all complaints from Bulgarian healthcare users referred to the ORB over a 13-year period (2005 - 2018). Materials and methods: Retrospective documental research was used in the present study. The data included the complaints obtained from the official annual reports of the ORB that are available online. Bibliographic and documental searches were also used as sources. The complaints were analyzed by their annual distribution and classified by problem areas in the HCS. Results: Between 2005 and 2018, there were a total of 3288 complaints filed to ORB against HCS. In 2015, 368 complaints were received by ORB from Bulgarian healthcare users and from various patient organizations concerning problems in the HCS. The filed complaints to ORB increased by 82% in 2016 (n=421). In 2017, the overall number of ORB-referred complaints amounted to 494, and in 2018 their number was as high as 607, which represents an increase by 23% compared to the number of complaints in 2017. Conclusion: The great number of complaints referred to ORB about the HCS over the last four years strongly suggests that the institution of the Ombudsman in Bulgaria enjoys high confidence among Bulgarian healthcare users.