Comparative Study of Hospitals’ Transparency in Eight Countries

Information asymmetry leads to less informed patients in choosing healthcare providers. Therefore, countries have moved forward to increase providers’ transparency, information symmetry and patients’ power. This study was designed to compare countries’ experiences about hospitals’ transparency.

The list of countries in this comparative study was prepared with the help of the Global Open Data Index and Open Data Barometer. Searching for official websites with keywords like “hospital transparency” and “hospital comparing tool,” the final websites were obtained. Finally, indicators and types of organization of these websites were compared.

Websites from eight countries were selected. The number of indicators for comparing hospitals was variable, from 17 in Australia to 195 in the UK. Type of indicators could be categorized into several groups, including waiting times, length of stay, patients’ experience, staff’s experience, treatment outcomes, infection control, and price of care. Studied experiences showed that countries developed hospitals’ transparency due to their needs and limitations. Some countries like the UK and the US were pioneers but there is a global trend to develop transparency in the health system.

By increasing public awareness, governments moved forward to develop transparency and the health sector was not an exception. Although private companies and startups are engaged in these innovations, governments have the main role to build the legal, political, and data infrastructures. Therefore, it is recommended that Iranian policymakers and politicians develop transparency of hospitals and health systems gradually using global experiences and considering domestic conditions and capacities.