Dutch, Swiss and German healthcare systems score highest in 'user-friendliness' 

When the twelve national health care systems are compared , the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany lead the way, scoring 48, 47 and 46 points out of 60 obtainable respectively (Poland ended up with least points - 25 - with Italy scoring 29 points).

The EuroHealth Consumer Index is compiled by a private Swedish company and is created by selecting a number of indicators describing the 'user-friendliness' of national healthcare systems. Taking a strong consumer view, the index adds to existing evaluations carried out by institutions such as the WHO and the OECD . 

Currently ranking only the twelve largest European countries, the index will be expanded in 2006 to cover the whole of the EU-25.