Health System In Singapore and Finland

Running head: HEALTH SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE AND FINLAND
HEALTH SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE AND FINLAND
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HEALTH SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE AND FINLAND1
The healthcare is very dynamic as well as complex in the environment. Healthcare
leaders need transparency about the health system in order to deliver efficient and effective
health. To understand better the policies, health system and preventive measures, one needs
to understand another country in the same manner. The health system can be broadly
understood with the help of multiple elements starting from the funding system to governance
and until the quality of the health system (DeSalvoet al., 2016). The goal of this essay is to
understand the health system of Singapore as well as Finland. With the help of comparison
and differences between both the countries, health leaders and other stakeholders of
healthcare will be able to understand the status of the health system in the country.
The funding system of Singapore has multiple layers in the system. The appropriate
funding is very much crucial. A government needs to keep this sector as priority while
allocating budget for every segments. This multiple layer of system lead to participation from
governments, private employees or any individuals as well as the insurance company or
industry (Thomaset al., 2016). The first system is subsidies, here the government provides
subsidized testing or any diagnosis. Subsidies cover primary care, intermediate unitcare,
hospitalisation along with day surgery, outpatient clinics and many others. The second system
is Medisave, it comes under the central provident fund. Here individuals of Singapore build
their savings account for future needs of medical. They will contribute 7-8 percent of
monthly salary and can access the Medisave (cpf.gov.sg, 2020). The third system is the
Medishield. It is health insurance schemes. These schemes let an individual pay their bills in
large hospitals. The fourth funding system is Medifund, and it is a government endowment
fund. The fifth funding system is private insurance; it gives coverage for every patient to seek
treatment in private hospitals. There is another funding system like corporate healthcare
benefits or Insurance or any other preventive healthcare. All these schemes include in the
funding system of the Singapore health system.

HEALTH SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE AND FINLAND2
The health funding in Finland is done with the help of multiple sources. The first
provisional system is the municipal system, the national health insurance system and
occupational schemes. The fundamental financing is done with the help of local authorities
that comes under municipalities. The health system in Finland is decentralised. The
healthcare system is based on public healthcare services. There are multiple agencies under
the Ministries of social affairs as well as health. National Institute for health and welfare
(THL), Finnish Medicines Agency (Fimea), Radiation and Nuclear safety authority, Finnish
institute of occupational health and National supervisory authority for welfare and health
(Keskimäkiet al., 2019). There are some other key players in funding the health system of
Finland. Private organisation or companies, independent professional practitioners and other
reimbursement schemes. Another scheme under National health insurance, people of the
country can access free healthcare. In comparison to Finland, Singapore's funding system and
insurance scheme are different. It involved the government as well as individuals of the
country.
The government of Singapore has allocated around 10.7 billion to the sector of
healthcare. This sector has been spent the largest after education and defence by the
government of Singapore. The overall GDP is 4.47% in the sector of healthcare
(worldbank.org., 2020). With the funding rate in the health system, the infrastructure is going
to enhance. The government is planning to increase as a minimum of one hospital every two
years. The workforce will increase leading to increase healthcare professionals to provide a
high quality of care. The improvement in technology is necessary in order for efficient
diagnosis and treatment, and the investment b government will help in achieving it.
Additionally, the government has also expanded the safety of the health system.
The GDP of health expenditure in Finland is 9.493% (worldbank.org, 2020). The
largest areas include outpatient care, long-term care, and the inpatient care department along

HEALTH SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE AND FINLAND3
with the pharmaceutical department. Finland is focusing on technology and innovation to
enhance the quality of care.
Singapore's health system follows the three pillars of philosophy. The first approach is
building a strong population with the help of healthy routines. The second approach is living
a healthy life through the 3M system. That includes Medisave, Medishield along Medifund.
The third pillar is that the government keeps the cost of healthcare low for providing
accessible healthcare for everyone (Healthcare System in Singapore, 2020). The main
regulators in the Singapore health system are Minister of Health (MOH), central provident
fund (CPF), and Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The major responsibility of MOH
is to regulate the services of health. It can be health education, awareness and prevention of
diseases, monitoring the quality of health services. All the funds and schemes including
saving plans are governed by CPF. There is three types of accounts in the CPF; those are
ordinary account, special account and Medisave account. MAS regulates the financial aspect
of the health system.
Finland has a decentralised administrative health system. The municipalities control
the core health system. The health system is governed by the parliament, government and
Ministry of Social Affairs and health (MSAH). Parliament and the ministries of social affairs
govern Social Insurance Institution as well as the municipalities and their federations.
Municipalities have the majority of responsibility to look after health centres, district
hospitals and private healthcare providers. Further, health stations and PHC or specialist
clinics work under the governance of municipalities. The major function and responsibilities
of the MSAH are defining as well as monitoring service quality, accessing along with
ensuring equivalent deliveries of facilities, determining the process of supplies for instance,
facility delivery or purchasing. MSAH is responsible for NHI, occupational health, medicines
as well as safety. They provide a track for making health policy along with preparing