Issue One 2016
2016, Vol. 3, issue 1, (June)
Original Article
Why is Corruption in the Healthcare Sector in Bulgaria so Common?
Abstract:
The term corruption refers to everything from paying bribes to civil servants and large-scale theft from public funds to a wider range of economic and political practices that people consider abuses of power and that are increasingly criminalized.
Corruption thrives where transparency, accountability, and participation are weak, where the public sector and financial management capacities are low, and where public decision-making has been compromised by conflicts of interest and political interference. Corruption in the health sector can have severe consequences on the access to, quality, equity and effectiveness of health care services.
A key assessment tool for measuring vulnerability to corruption is a control system review or risk assessment. Control systems are the internal operational processes by which an organization makes decisions and uses resources to perform its mission. A control system review can help measure discretion, accountability, transparency and enforcement.