Briefing

Although Czech healthcare spending has risen from 5.4% to 7% of GDP since the velvet revolution of 1989, doctors there have not seen much of it. According to an article in the CMAJ (1999;161:185) they are about to strike. Starting salaries for the newly qualified are just over £100/month, with the average salary at just under £400/month (including 80 hours of overtime). Many doctors moonlight outside the system to reduce their financial burdens, leaving them “too tired, unhappy, or distracted” to spend much time talking to patients.