The document published by the Ministry of Health indicates that the population rates hospital care at 7.2 out of 10 and primary care at 6.2, which increased by 23% the number of consultations in 2022.

National Health System Report

TDB keeps you informed. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

The National Health Service (NHS) Report 2022 published by the Ministry of Health reflects the positive assessment that citizens give to public healthcare, both at the hospital and health centre level.

Hospital care activity amounted to nearly four million inpatients, 3.4 million surgical interventions and around 82 million consultations, and received a rating of 7.2 points out of 10.

Primary Care registered a total of 453 million consultations in 2022, 23.4% more than the previous year, and received 6.2 points from users.

Health protection in Spain is a universal right so that the entire population has publicly funded healthcare coverage; the National Health System, which serves 96.5% of the population, is the main healthcare provider. Overall, the rating of the public health system by the general population is 6.3 points out of 10.

Life expectancy at birth will be 83.1 years in 2021, recovering the favourable trend that was interrupted in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. It remains higher in women (85.8 years) than in men (80.3).

Public healthcare spending in 2020 stands at 8.1% of GDP, accounting for 73.5% of total healthcare spending, and has increased by 25% since 2016.

Analgesics are the most consumed drugs in Spain, while the most consumed drugs in the hospitals of the SNS public network are those of the therapeutic group formed by antineoplastics, immunosuppressants and antivirals for systemic use.

Three out of four consider their health to be good or very good
In terms of citizens’ perception of their health, three out of every four people (76%) rate their state of health as good or very good. In addition, the health-related quality of life of children and adolescents is high: 87.4 points out of 100.

The main causes of mortality are cardiovascular diseases and cancer, which account for more than 50% of deaths. Mortality from malignant tumours has decreased by around 7% in the last decade. Suicide is the cause of more than 4,000 a year.

Regarding lifestyles: two out of 10 adults are obese, four out of 10 people say they are sedentary in their free time, two out of 10 people do not consume enough fruit and vegetables, and one out of 10 young people between 15 and 24 years of age say they have drunk alcohol intensively at least once a month in the last year.