Among other things, the Agency is tasked with strengthening the development towards more patient- and person-centered health and social care services, by assessing the possibilities for patients and their families to be involved and participate in the care process. Society’s resources must be used in the best way possible to ensure that both patients’ health and the patient-experienced quality are as good as they can be.

The Agency’s work is always done from an independent position. We conduct our analyses from the perspective of patients and citizens.

We conduct reviews within areas where there is a potential and an opportunity to improve the health of the public, as well as improving public confidence and experience of quality in health and social care services. The results from analyses and reviews are presented in reports.

The reports need to provide valuable insights to the health, dental and social care services. For example, they can address a reform that has been implemented and that now needs to be evaluated. An investigation of a particular issue might also be motivated by a tip from  the public or from experts. A third category deals with international experiences, benchmarks and best practices, which could serve as inspiration and be of value to the Swedish health care or social care services.

The reports often result in a number of recommendations from the Agency to the Swedish government, offering proposals for improvements.

The Swedish government is the formal recipient of the Agency’s reports. However, the goal is to write and publish reports so that patients, citizens, and other stakeholders have the opportunity to study the results.

The Agency was formed in 2011 and has about 45 employees.

A new analysis plan every year

Every year, we decide on an analysis plan that sets out the main strategic direction for operations for that year.

Some of the areas of research will be long-term projects and continue over several years. The reviews and analyses are either conducted by the Agency’s own employees, or with the help of external researchers, depending on what is considered most appropriate for the specific topic.

The areas of analysis that are to be prioritised are determined by the following principles:

  • There must be clear potential for improvement.
  • The area must be insufficiently illuminated.
  • The Swedish Agency for Health and Care Services Analysis must, owing to its independent position, be better suited than others to conduct an analysis or review for objective reasons.
  • The analysis must be able to generate  recommendations for the Swedish government.

Areas of review

Since the Agency was established, we have shed light on issues such as to what degree Swedish health care is patient-centered. We have also analysed whether patients and citizens have access to the information they need in order to be fully equipped to be involved in their own health care and be able to make their own choices. A third area of review deals with what consequences the reform of patients’ ability to choose providers has had for different patient and consumer groups.