Relationship Between Population Health and Economic Development on the Example of European Countries

Abstract

The purpose of the chapter is to determine the link between the health of the population and economic development in the case of European countries. Based on the selected health indicators, a composite index was created, while the GDP per capita and disposable income were used as indicators of economic development. The results obtained by TOPSIS method show that there is a significant positive relationship between the composite index of health status of the population and indicators of economic development. Therefore, more investment in health care and improvement of living conditions is essential. The average values of composite population health index indicate that the countries of Western Europe on average have the best health status of the population, followed by the Mediterranean countries and the Northern European countries, while the Baltic countries have the lowest average value of the composite population health index.