BMJ  2005;331:226-227 (23 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7510.226

Commentary

Patients' empowerment: the East side story

¹ Department of Health and of the Partial Agreement in Social and Public Health Field, Directorate General III—Social Cohesion, Council of Europe, 67075 Strasbourg-Cedex, France piotr.mierzewski@coe.int

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The report by Mastilica and Kuec on citizens' dissatisfaction with the Croatian healthcare system¹ could have also been set in almost any other country in transition. The transition from "real socialism" to "real prices" has been more difficult and painful than expected. Socialism has become a bad concept—and so have social concerns. In reaction to the previous totalitarian regime, commanding and controlling all social systems, the state has withdrawn from many social responsibilities. This has enabled various interest groups—doctors among them—to shape public opinion.

The public was also largely shaped by the legacy of "Homo sovieticus"—a passive, obedient citizen who trades freedom for safety and who is void of personal initiative and self determination, a citizen who expects, even demands, everything from the state. The forced transition to "Homo economicus" found many citizens who did not fully understand the rules of the new competitive environment feeling helpless. Ironically, "soviet" . . . [Full text of this article]

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