The range of services provided within the health system is almost unique by international standards, covering everything from health promotion, disease prevention to acute hospital treatment and a wide spectrum of personal, social and community services. One of the problems in showing effectiveness and outcomes of investment in the health area at the macro-population level is the time-lag between the investment and the measurable effect in terms of life expectancy and/or premature mortality. However, there are improvements to be pointed to in the system and it would be remiss of me, and unfair to our highly skilled and committed workforce, not to illustrate some of these achievements.