Dr. Vytautas Valentinavičius, a researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SHMMF) of Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), presented a paper at the 7th International Conference of the Public Policy Association (ICPP7), held on July 1-4, 2025, in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The topic of the presentation was “Eliminating petty corruption as a barrier to health equality: an analysis of anti-corruption measures in Lithuania.” The presentation gained the attention of the international audience due to its relevance to health policy, service quality, and equality issues.
The study discusses manifestations of petty corruption in the Lithuanian healthcare system and their impact on the accessibility of services, trust in institutions, and equality of healthcare services. The presentation was based on a consistent overview of anti-corruption measures in the health sector – from transparency standards, health service queue management, and digitization of these services to anonymous reporting channels and conflict of interest prevention. Moreover, the analysis combined a review of national and institutional documents with a comparative analysis of institutional measures (2018–2025).
The results show that the greatest impact on petty corruption is achieved through transparent and publicly understood rules, one-stop-shop procedures, digital tools (electronic submissions, queues, payments), as well as consistent strengthening of employee ethics and accountability. At the same time, it was emphasized that effective measures must be comprehensive, combining prevention, control, transparency, and continuous monitoring feedback in order to reduce everyday corrupt practices and restore trust in public services.
The presentation was jointly prepared with co-authors Prof. Dr. Raminta Pučėtaite, Dr. Donata Jovarauskiene, Dr. Rimvydas Rauleckas, and Jolanta Vaičiūniene, and presented within the framework of the Research Council of Lithuania-funded project PULSE (S-MIP-24-25). The participation of KTU representatives in ICPP7 strengthened the international visibility of the faculty and opened up new opportunities for cooperation with foreign researchers. In the near future, it is planned to continue empirical work and prepare evidence-based recommendations for policymakers and healthcare institutions.
