Dr. Dinu SĂDEANU, Head of the Public Health Directorate Suceava, at FERM 2025: “Romania urgently needs a national prevention policy, otherwise we will no longer be able to cope with chronic diseases”
Mesaje publice
REGIONAL ECONOMIC FORUM MOLDOVA 2025
19th Edition – Vatra Dornei, July 9–13, 2025
Thematic Panel:
Health and Medical Services in the Moldova Region
Speaker:
Dr. Dinu Sădeanu – Head of Public Health Directorate Suceava
Topic of the intervention:
“Public Health and Prevention. Combating Chronic Diseases and Improving Lifestyle”
Dr. Dinu Sădeanu, Head of the Public Health Directorate Suceava, presented a comprehensive and alarming overview of the demographic and medical realities in Suceava County as well as in the region. Alongside him, Roman Boca, Director of DornaMedical, sounded alarms regarding the prevention crisis and the lack of vision in managing public health in Romania.
An Increasingly Aging Population with Major Chronic Risks
Dr. Dinu Sădeanu began his intervention by contextualizing the demographic situation in the North-East region, emphasizing that Suceava County ranks second by population size after Iași, but “demographic and health pressures are rapidly increasing.”
“In Suceava County, there are nearly 88 elderly people for every 100 children. The demographic dependency ratio is 48.65 – almost 49 dependents per 100 active people. These figures clearly show that pressure on the health and social system will increase.”
According to the data presented, the age pyramid shows a narrowing base and a widening peak among women – a clear sign of population aging and declining birth rates. In 2024, birth rates significantly dropped nationwide, with Suceava County being among the most affected.
Cardiovascular Diseases and Diabetes – Leading Causes of Mortality
“In Suceava County, the highest mortality rate is caused by cardiovascular diseases – 587.93 per 100,000 inhabitants,” specified the head of the Public Health Directorate. Among these, the most frequent causes of death are:
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Cerebrovascular diseases – 30%
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Ischemic heart diseases – 31%
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Arterial hypertension – 21%
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Acute myocardial infarction – 15%
Between 2015 and 2021, the mortality rate due to circulatory system diseases steadily increased, peaking in 2021. Subsequently, a decrease was observed, but levels remain high.
Also, diabetes prevalence rose from 3.55% in 2015 to 5.16% in 2024, with over 39,000 patients registered in Suceava County alone.
Family Medical System: Aging and Without Future
Dr. Sădeanu also presented a worrying reality regarding the human resources in primary care medicine.
“Almost 36% of family doctors in Suceava County are over 65 years old. The 25-34 age group is represented by only 8 doctors – just 3% of the total. This raises serious concerns about the sustainability of the system in the coming years.”
Roman Boca (Dorna Medical): “We Have Frightening Data. Romania is Biologically Deteriorating”
Present at the panel, Roman Boca, Director of DornaMedical, complemented the bleak picture with a direct critique of public policies:
“The demographic decline in 2024 is the largest since 1918. The population is aging and physically deteriorating. Causes? Diet, lack of exercise, childhood obesity – which exceeds 40%, sedentary lifestyle, and smoking. All these reduce life expectancy.”
Boca emphasized the lack of vision among central authorities.
“In Romania, prevention is not discussed. Family medicine should be the main pillar, but it is suffocated. Out of 257 doctors in the county, more than half are over 65 years old. And they have not even had access to funding through the NRRP. The private sector was completely excluded.”
Roman Boca highlighted the sharp contrast between Romania and other Central European countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, which have allowed the private medical system to access European funds for development. In his view, persistent blockages in Romania reflect a limited and visionless mindset among decision-makers, hindering real modernization of healthcare infrastructure.
Proposals to Combat the Crisis: Real Prevention, Education, and Partnerships
Dr. Sădeanu presented a concrete set of measures to reduce mortality from chronic diseases:
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Health education in schools, with emphasis on nutrition and physical activity
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Prevention campaigns at the workplace, focused on stress and hypertension
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Health education integrated into family doctors’ consultations
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Cardiovascular screening programs in communities
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DSP–NGO–local authority partnerships for screening and information dissemination
Conclusion
The interventions delivered by Dr. Dinu Sădeanu and Roman Boca at the Regional Economic Forum Moldova 2025 sounded a profound and well-founded alarm: the health system in the Moldova region, as well as nationwide, is facing a multiple crisis – demographic, structural, and of vision. The accelerated aging of the population, the increase in chronic diseases, and the predictable collapse of the family medicine network are clear signs that prevention can no longer be treated as a slogan, but as a strategic priority.
Both the rigorous analysis presented by the Public Health Directorate Suceava and the direct appeal from the private sector represented by DornaMedical converge toward the same conclusion: without coherent public policies, without real investments in prevention, health education, and partnerships between the state and the private sector, Romania will continue to lose not only money and resources but also lives.
