In developing partner countries where the EU supports the health sector, it provides assistance to the health-care systems, either supporting integrated service provision that includes sexual, reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services across the continuum of care, or providing budget support to assist countries to improve national health service delivery.

Ireland has made available a wide range of Travellers-dedicated health services, such as the Traveller Health Units and the Primary Health Care Projects (including health mediators and public health nurses for Travellers).

whether there are common minimum rights or standards shared values and principles for health services on which citizens can rely throughout the EU; what practical issues need to be clarified for citizens who wish to seek healthcare in other Member States; what flexibility Member States have to regulate and plan their own systems without creating unjustified barriers to free movement; how to reconcile greater choice in exercising individual entitlements with financial sustainability of health systems overall; how to ensure proper compensation for cross-border healthcare provided ‘receiving’ countries; how patients or professionals ca ...[+++]n identify, compare or choose between providers in other countries; the link between health services and related services such as social services and long-term care; and what happens when patients need compensation where the healthcare provided has been harmful, which evidence suggests happens in around 10% of cases.

1. RECALLING the Council Resolution of 18 November 1999 on the promotion of mental health , which, inter alia, invited the Commission to consider incorporating activities on the theme of mental health in future action programmes for public health, the Council Resolution of 29 June 2000 on action on health determinants , the Council Conclusions of 5 June 2001 on a Community strategy to reduce alcohol-related harm which, inter alia, underline the close link between alcohol abuse, social exclusion and mental illness, and the Council Conclusions of 15 November 2001 on combating stress and depression-related problems , which, inter alia, invited Member States to take actions to improve knowledge on the promotion of mental health in primary care and oth ...[+++]er health services as well as in social services;

emphasised the potential of e-Health developments to contribute to the empowerment of European citizens in relation to their health and wellbeing; endorsed the new possibilities provided by e-Health including the Internet to disseminate, exchange and manage health-related information, to improve administrative processes, and to support healthcare services; highlighted the potential of e-Health for addressing new opportunities and challenges in the context of the programme of Community action in the field of public health (2003-2008) and the achievement of the e-Europe 2005 action plan targets; recognised that e-Health can enhance the ...[+++]expectation of European citizens to seek health services in a Member State other than that in which they reside through for example, the European Health Insurance Card; called for full regard to be taken in relation to data protection, privacy and security in developing, testing and implementing e-Health systems; called for greater research into the potential applications of e-Health, in particular the integration of data and interoperability; and called for the greater sharing of best practice at the European level in the provision of personalised information and advice via telemedicine services and health-related websites, and in quality assurance.

The programme aims to: strengthen and organise provincial teams to enable them to manage and supervise health services; support and coordinate public and non-public health services (NGOs, charities and the private sector); improve hospital management, the supply of hospital services and the quality of hospital care; strengthen the referencesystem; streamline the administration and use of basic medicines; involve the community in health service management and introduce cost recovery strategies.