Skip to main content

Table 4 List of 178 potential drivers included in round 2 of the Web-Delphi, and distribution of the answers in that round

From: Scenarios for population health inequalities in 2030 in Europe: the EURO-HEALTHY project experience

PESTLE category

Driver

SD

D

NAD

A

SA

DK/

DWtA

Political

Strength of liberal political orientations

7%

7%

10%

33%

38%

5%

Political

Capacity to produce EU agreements

 

7%

40%

48%

5%

 

Political

EU integration process

 

2%

26%

55%

17%

 

Political

Confidence in EU policies

2%

2%

43%

48%

5%

 

Political

Cohesion funds (or other funds) for less-favoured regions

 

2%

7%

43%

48%

 

Political

Political commitment and ideological support towards universal access to healthcare

2%

5%

10%

29%

55%

 

Political

State involvement in public health

2%

2%

12%

33%

50%

 

Political

Commitment to appropriateness of the healthcare systems in the EU

 

5%

31%

36%

26%

2%

Political

Market oriented reforms in healthcare (including privatization of healthcare)

7%

10%

14%

31%

38%

 

Political

Priority for investment in innovation in health

5%

7%

14%

45%

29%

 

Political

Social protection policies for the elderly

 

7%

5%

40%

48%

 

Political

Investments in national social security systems

2%

 

10%

48%

40%

 

Political

Global political evolution (e.g. the aftermath of the United States elections; Syria war, etc.)

2%

12%

26%

29%

31%

 

Political

Power of populistic, protectionist and nationalist radical political projects in the EU

5%

7%

19%

29%

38%

2%

Political

Political stability in the EU and its Member-States (e.g. Brexit)

2%

7%

21%

50%

17%

2%

Political

Municipalisation [i.e. power to the municipalities]

5%

10%

33%

33%

17%

2%

Political

Application of road regulations/rules

 

10%

31%

48%

2%

10%

Political

Degree of penalization associated with traffic policies to reduce traffic accidents

2%

12%

31%

38%

7%

10%

Political

Policies for reducing traffic accidents in Eastern countries

  

29%

48%

19%

5%

Political

Levels of investment in road safety

 

5%

26%

48%

19%

2%

Political

Austerity policies

7%

5%

10%

31%

43%

5%

Political

Growth of compulsory education

 

5%

7%

40%

45%

2%

Political

Privatization of education

10%

17%

19%

31%

21%

2%

Political

Investment in the modernization of the built environment

 

5%

21%

40%

33%

 

Economic

Financing of the healthcare sector (in proportion of the Gross Domestic Product) in more economically vulnerable countries

2%

2%

10%

55%

29%

2%

Economic

Social insurance schemes

2%

7%

10%

40%

40%

 

Economic

Financial pressure on healthcare systems

5%

7%

10%

50%

29%

 

Economic

Public expenditure in the healthcare system

 

2%

7%

50%

40%

 

Economic

Healthcare costs

2%

5%

17%

36%

40%

 

Economic

Constraints on fiscal policies

 

2%

33%

43%

14%

7%

Economic

Economic evolution in EU countries with a younger population compared to the economic evolution in EU countries with an older population

 

2%

24%

55%

12%

7%

Economic

Economic growth of some EU countries, namely of the ones from the former Eastern block

2%

 

24%

64%

10%

 

Economic

Evolution of socioeconomic conditions and wealth in less developed countries/areas in Europe

 

2%

7%

57%

31%

2%

Economic

Economic evolution (e.g. Gross Domestic Product, productivity)

 

5%

24%

43%

26%

2%

Economic

Economic evolution in some countries of the Southern Europe (compared to the other EU countries)

 

2%

17%

52%

26%

2%

Economic

Economic and social crises

  

5%

43%

52%

 

Economic

Financial crisis

 

2%

10%

38%

50%

 

Economic

Concentration of capital accumulation

2%

5%

24%

36%

33%

 

Economic

People's economic stress

 

2%

14%

38%

45%

 

Economic

Economic inequalities

2%

 

2%

21%

74%

 

Economic

Early retirement in some countries of the Southern Europe (compared to the other EU countries)

 

12%

52%

26%

7%

2%

Economic

Pension levels and differences in working after retirement

 

2%

19%

57%

21%

 

Economic

Proportion of economically dependent population

 

2%

21%

45%

31%

 

Economic

Evolution of financial burden share between generations within families

 

5%

26%

45%

24%

 

Economic

Financial pressures leading to cuts in social expenditures (e.g. pensions)

 

2%

7%

40%

50%

 

Economic

Differences in pension regimes within the EU (e.g. differences in national net pension replacement rates)

 

2%

29%

45%

21%

2%

Economic

Poverty levels

  

7%

21%

71%

 

Economic

Social benefits

  

12%

43%

45%

 

Economic

Global economic integration and interrelations

 

7%

21%

45%

21%

5%

Economic

Inclusion of the refugees on the labour market

2%

10%

21%

40%

26%

 

Economic

Unemployment rate in Europe

 

2%

2%

48%

48%

 

Economic

Long-term structural unemployment

  

2%

33%

64%

 

Economic

Unemployment in late ages

  

7%

43%

50%

 

Economic

Employment precariousness

  

2%

52%

43%

2%

Economic

Employment with low income/limited social benefits

  

7%

43%

50%

 

Economic

Unemployment in countries of the Southern Europe (compared to the other EU countries)

 

7%

21%

43%

24%

5%

Economic

Employment opportunities for people with low qualifications

 

2%

17%

64%

17%

 

Economic

Employment opportunities for medical/health personnel

2%

14%

29%

45%

10%

 

Economic

Disparities in industry production

 

14%

50%

24%

7%

5%

Economic

Investment in formal education

 

2%

24%

45%

29%

 

Economic

Demand for qualified workers

 

10%

33%

48%

7%

2%

Social

Refugees and migrants’ fluxes

 

7%

17%

60%

14%

2%

Social

Migrations to the most economically developed North-West European countries

 

7%

26%

57%

7%

2%

Social

Emigration from EU countries already affected by population ageing and decrease in natality

 

12%

26%

48%

12%

2%

Social

Urbanisation (attractiveness of urban areas)

 

7%

31%

50%

12%

 

Social

Concentration of people in suburban areas

 

7%

33%

45%

14%

 

Social

Concentration of people at risk (e.g. poverty) in problematic neighbourhoods

 

2%

7%

48%

43%

 

Social

Differential in regions’ ability (political and/or economic) to attract young people, including migrants and refugees

 

5%

21%

55%

17%

2%

Social

Population ageing

 

14%

19%

31%

36%

 

Social

Quantitative evolution of the young population

 

14%

36%

36%

10%

5%

Social

Birth rates across EU countries

 

14%

43%

33%

10%

 

Social

Birth rates in some countries of the Southern Europe (compared to the other EU countries)

 

14%

45%

33%

7%

 

Social

Ageing pace in Central and Eastern Europe compared to other EU countries

 

12%

43%

40%

5%

 

Social

Regional differences in ageing patterns at a European level

 

12%

40%

40%

7%

 

Social

Life expectancy

 

12%

19%

43%

21%

5%

Social

Healthy life expectancy

 

10%

17%

29%

38%

7%

Social

Differential in regions’ health expectancy

 

7%

19%

50%

17%

7%

Social

Voting power of the elderly population

2%

12%

60%

21%

5%

 

Social

Population growth in relation to the “housing capacity”

 

7%

55%

29%

5%

5%

Social

Awareness of the road safety problematic

 

17%

45%

31%

5%

2%

Social

Road safety campaigns and education

2%

10%

38%

40%

7%

2%

Social

Social pressure for “bridging the gap” in terms of built environment

 

5%

29%

62%

5%

 

Social

Overall quality of road infrastructure

2%

2%

31%

55%

7%

2%

Social

Quality of the roads in Southern and Eastern Europe

2%

7%

29%

52%

7%

2%

Social

Vehicles quality and safety

 

2%

36%

50%

10%

2%

Social

Metropolization

 

2%

45%

45%

5%

2%

Social

Traffic density

 

5%

38%

38%

19%

 

Social

Disparities in medical standards

 

2%

17%

43%

36%

2%

Social

Medical quality

 

5%

17%

38%

40%

 

Social

Medical effectiveness of healthcare services

 

2%

12%

45%

40%

 

Social

Access to healthcare

  

5%

33%

62%

 

Social

Access to hospital emergency room

 

5%

10%

52%

33%

 

Social

Quality and accessibility of the primary health care services

  

5%

38%

57%

 

Social

Access to healthcare services in rural areas

  

10%

40%

48%

2%

Social

Quality of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in remote and/or rural areas

 

2%

10%

50%

36%

2%

Social

Emergency Medical Services efficiency

 

5%

19%

45%

31%

 

Social

European medical network

 

7%

36%

45%

12%

 

Social

European citizens’ health literacy and collaboration capacity as patients

  

29%

43%

29%

 

Social

Educational and public health campaigns

 

10%

21%

43%

26%

 

Social

Education and training of health professionals

 

10%

24%

43%

24%

 

Social

Mobility of health professionals between countries and regions

 

10%

36%

40%

12%

2%

Social

Concentration of equipment and clusters of medical activities

 

5%

43%

36%

17%

 

Social

Availability of health infrastructures

 

2%

19%

48%

31%

 

Social

Coverage of National Health Service

  

5%

52%

40%

2%

Social

Response capacity of the health sector (quality of emergency/first respondents and hospital care) in less developed countries

  

12%

55%

31%

2%

Social

Quality of healthcare organization and management

 

5%

10%

48%

38%

 

Social

Knowledge sharing

 

2%

33%

36%

26%

2%

Social

Availability of information on better lifestyles

 

5%

36%

36%

24%

 

Social

Quality of the education in the EU

  

17%

52%

31%

 

Social

Academisation of the society

 

7%

40%

40%

10%

2%

Social

Low qualifications in the EU

  

29%

64%

7%

 

Social

Impacts on the quality of jobs and enthusiasm for Tertiary Education

  

38%

52%

5%

5%

Social

Monitoring of education results

 

7%

55%

36%

2%

 

Social

Capacity of Eastern European countries to cope with the collapse of the soviet society [i.e. with the loss of some of its key features, for instance in education]

 

10%

45%

38%

5%

2%

Social

Educational attainment as an aspiration of EU countries

 

10%

29%

50%

7%

5%

Social

Objectives in education in the EU

 

5%

43%

36%

14%

2%

Social

Levels of education and literacy

 

2%

2%

69%

24%

2%

Social

Flexibility of academic curricula in the EU

2%

12%

48%

31%

2%

5%

Social

University fees

 

7%

40%

36%

12%

5%

Social

Academisation of job profiles

 

14%

50%

29%

2%

5%

Social

Existence of vocational training

 

10%

36%

43%

7%

5%

Social

Differences in cultural traditions

 

19%

31%

36%

10%

5%

Social

Globalization of style life

 

17%

31%

43%

5%

5%

Social

Awareness regarding the impact of lifestyles on quality of life

 

14%

17%

50%

14%

5%

Social

Stress

 

7%

17%

33%

40%

2%

Social

Awareness campaigns tackling alcohol consumption

 

12%

12%

52%

24%

 

Social

Awareness regarding the impact of smoking

 

10%

14%

48%

29%

 

Social

Smoking restriction policies

 

2%

2%

48%

48%

 

Social

Smoking among women

  

12%

40%

48%

 

Social

Smoking among manual workers

  

14%

52%

31%

2%

Social

Taxation and control of unhealthy food consumption

 

2%

10%

57%

31%

 

Social

Diet

 

5%

17%

38%

40%

 

Social

Disparities in health behaviours

 

7%

10%

52%

31%

 

Social

Sedentary lifestyles

  

17%

43%

40%

 

Social

Evolution of Non-communicable diseases like diabetes and hypertension

 

2%

10%

43%

43%

2%

Social

Social mobility (change in hierarchies in socio-economic positions)

 

7%

14%

52%

26%

 

Social

Motorization in Eastern countries

 

7%

45%

38%

5%

5%

Technological

Medical innovation (new medicines and technologies)

 

5%

17%

45%

31%

2%

Technological

Technology and medical devices at home

 

10%

19%

45%

24%

2%

Technological

Technology and innovation costs in healthcare systems

 

7%

17%

50%

26%

 

Technological

Evolution of vehicles batteries’ autonomy

 

19%

40%

31%

10%

 

Technological

Knowledge and innovation in technology and materials for road safety

 

10%

33%

45%

7%

5%

Technological

Innovation in technology and materials for the built environment

 

10%

33%

40%

14%

2%

Technological

Innovation in housing (new forms of housing)

 

14%

33%

33%

14%

5%

Technological

Price of technology and materials for road safety and for the built environment

 

7%

38%

38%

14%

2%

Technological

Acceleration in industry development in less developed countries

 

14%

33%

38%

12%

2%

Technological

Pace of change in manufacturing in Europe (industry 4.0)

 

14%

43%

26%

12%

5%

Technological

Automation of industrial production

 

7%

40%

33%

14%

5%

Technological

Internet access

2%

5%

33%

48%

12%

 

Environmental

Quality of the living environment

 

2%

2%

50%

45%

 

Environmental

Quality of the outdoor air

 

2%

 

38%

60%

 

Environmental

Climate change

 

2%

14%

43%

38%

2%

Environmental

Climate change actions and policies

 

5%

17%

43%

33%

2%

Environmental

Concerns related to natural resources efficiency (e.g. energy efficiency)

 

7%

26%

43%

24%

 

Environmental

Energy efficiency efforts

 

10%

19%

52%

19%

 

Environmental

Recycling: taxation and quotas

 

12%

29%

45%

14%

 

Environmental

Social and political awareness/preoccupation with the physical environment, namely air and noise conditions

 

7%

14%

55%

24%

 

Environmental

Gap in “environmental awareness” between more developed and less developed countries

 

2%

24%

48%

26%

 

Environmental

Priorities in terms of economic model: green-based vs oil-based (e.g. evolution of the number of environmental friendly vehicles)

 

5%

10%

45%

36%

5%

Environmental

Development of sustainable energy production (water, wind, sun)

  

21%

38%

40%

 

Environmental

Industrial development sustainability

2%

7%

29%

38%

24%

 

Environmental

Regional differences of the building construction boom

 

14%

29%

52%

5%

 

Environmental

Coordination of environmental-focused political measures

 

7%

21%

57%

14%

 

Environmental

Environmental protection policies focused on industrial manufacturing

 

7%

17%

57%

17%

2%

Environmental

Environmental protection policies focused on vehicles circulation

 

5%

14%

60%

19%

2%

Environmental

International and worldwide environmental agreements

 

7%

14%

45%

31%

2%

Environmental

United States of America commitment towards the Paris Agreement on climate change global action

 

10%

14%

48%

26%

2%

Legal

EU Legislation/ Directives and its transposition into the legislation of each country

 

10%

33%

43%

10%

5%

Legal

Adaptability of EU regulations (especially inside the Eurozone) to Member-states specificities

 

7%

45%

33%

12%

2%

Legal

Commitment to follow EU directives and World Health Organization guidelines

 

5%

19%

52%

21%

2%

Legal

EU legislation / directives on built environment

 

7%

21%

57%

10%

5%

Legal

National building construction rules and legislation

 

12%

31%

40%

10%

7%

Legal

Differences in road safety national legislation

2%

7%

29%

55%

2%

5%

Legal

EU environmental policies and regulations

 

5%

17%

64%

12%

2%

Legal

Requirements of compliance to environmental regulations for market purposes (e.g. quality of fuel)

 

2%

24%

55%

17%

2%

Legal

Evolution of intellectual property rights in health

2%

12%

43%

24%

14%

5%

Legal

Impact of the TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) project in the access to the latest advances in medicines, diagnostic tools, and other life-saving medical technologies

5%

5%

45%

26%

17%

2%

Legal

Integration of EU labour markets

 

10%

38%

38%

10%

5%

  1. SD Strongly Disagree, D Disagree, NAD Neither Agree nor Disagree, A Agree, SA Strongly Agree, DK/DWtA Don’t Know/Don’t Want to Answer
  2. Note: the 49 drivers selected after round 2, by applying the selection rules, are highlighted in bold; among these, in italic, are the drivers that resulted from the application of the second selection rule.