Long queues spotlight crisis in Slovenian healthcare

Long queues of patients lining up since early hours to sign up for a general practitioner at one of the units of the Ljubljana Community Health Centre have thrown spotlight on an acute crisis in Slovenia's healthcare.

Due to a shortage of doctors, in particular in primary care, more than 132,000 people in Slovenia do not have their named GP and the number keeps increasing as doctors retire or leave to work elsewhere.

When sick many such patients have seen no other option but turn up at A&E departments even for non-emergency conditions, which led to extremely long wait times...