Cyprus is among the countries with the lowest number of hospital beds in the European Union, according to data released today by Eurostat, ranking close to Malta (2,158 beds) and Luxembourg (2,609 beds), suggesting that the indicators may be influenced by the small size of the population.
Cyprus, according to the data, has 2,857 hospital beds, corresponding to 319 beds per 100,000 inhabitants.
In general, there has been a continuous trend of decreasing the number of hospital beds in the EU over the last ten years. According to the data, from 2012 to 2022, the number of beds in the EU decreased by 7%, from 24.7 million to 23 million.
Proportionate to the population, the average number of hospital beds per 100,000 people decreased from 563 in 2012 to 516 in 2022.
This reduction, as noted, reflects the new methods being followed, the development of medical technology, and the new technologies that significantly reduce the average length of hospital stays, along with the increase in structures providing day care or outpatient care services.
When it comes to long-term patient care, Cyprus also records low percentages, in contrast to the Netherlands, which records the highest rates with 1,420 beds per 100,000 people, followed by Sweden (1,299) and Belgium (1,283).
Germany records the highest number of hospital beds, also ranking second in the number of beds relative to its population, with 766 beds per 100,000.
Bulgaria records the highest number of hospital beds relative to its population, with 823 beds per 100,000 inhabitants. Romania ranks third in the ratio of beds to population, with 728 hospital beds per 100,000 inhabitants.
The countries with the lowest hospital bed indicators relative to their population are Sweden (190 beds per 100,000 people), the Netherlands (245), Denmark (248), Finland (261), Ireland (291), and Spain (294 beds).
However, as noted in the official data, these countries may record low bed-to-population ratios due to the promotion of outpatient or day care services.
