– Anyone who thinks that we are done with the hospital case today needs to think again. That’s what Hamar mayor Einar Busterud (BBL) says. On Monday it became clear: the government is going ahead with the plans for Mjøssjukehuset. This means that a large hospital, Mjøssjukehuset, will be built on Moelv. In addition, they will strengthen the hospitals in Lillehammer, Tynset and Elverum. This means that the two largest cities in the county, Hamar and Gjøvik, will lose their hospitals. While the Hamar mayor is disappointed, there is jubilation on the other side of Mjøsa. – We want to get the strength out of it – We feel this is good for us, good for patients and good for Inlandet. That’s what Gjøvik mayor Torvild Sveen (Sp) says after Monday’s press conference. – I think that in the long term, there are other opportunities for Gjøvik going forward that mean that we will come out of it stronger. It is important for future patients in the interior that we have a hospital where we can treat most patients, he says. HISTORICAL: On the press release that the government sent out about the hospital decision in the interior, the mayor of Gjøvik, Torvild Sveen, secured the signatures of the three ministers who presented the decision. – It is a historical document that I secured in my own small private archive, says Sveen. Photo: Lars Erik Skrefsrud / news Nevertheless, Sveen admits that it was no easy task to let go of the hospital in the city. – The point here is that someone has to go ahead and make some difficult choices so that others can follow in slightly easier terrain, says Sveen. Fears recruitment problems But the mayor of Hamar, who followed the press conference with his arms crossed, is not interested in the town being left without a hospital. He believes there are several disadvantages to placing a new, large Mjøssjukehus on Moelv. CRITICAL: Mayor of Hamar, Einar Busterud (BBL), is critical of the government’s decision to build Mjøssjukehuset in Moelv. Photo: Lars Erik Skrefsrud / news – Firstly, there is the recruitment. Two independent reports have said that recruitment to Moelv is worse. A hospital without staff usually provides poor treatment, says Busterud. – But it’s not far from Moelv to Hamar? – No, the problem is that Lillehammer and Moelv are so close to each other. If you look at how many people live in Lillehammer and Moelv, it is not enough to fill two hospitals, says the Hamar mayor. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre believes Mjøssjukehuset will be Europe’s leading hospital. – When a new hospital comes, it will be Europe’s leading hospital. Because that is the situation when Norway builds hospitals, says Støre. EUROPE’S LEADING: The Prime Minister believes that Mjøssjukehuset in Inlandet will become Europe’s leading hospital. Photo: Aleksandr Nedbaev / news But the Hamar mayor is skeptical about whether enough money will be put on the table to build “Europe’s best” hospital, and at the same time strengthen the hospitals in Lillehammer, Elverum and Tynset. He envisions postponement after postponement. – That is the big risk. Now Helse Sør-Öst will adopt a long-term investment plan in the autumn. Then it is very uncertain whether money will come to Innlandet and, if so, when, says Busterud. – The only thing that is certain today is that the further course is uncertain, he says. The government’s decision on Sykehuset Innlandet The government wants Sykehuset Innlandet to be further developed through; Establishment of a Mjøssjukehus in Moelv. A strengthened Elverum hospital compared to the current decision in Helse Sør-East RHF. It is a clear goal to utilize more of the building mass at Elverum. A Tynset hospital where the current business is continued with activity and workplaces at least at the current level. A versatile local hospital in Lillehammer, including that Lillehammer hospital has orthopedics and general surgery for its own local hospital area. Based on this, the government requests that Helse Sør-Öst make arrangements for: Further development of the elective orthopedic offer at Elverum hospital, where more 24-hour and day surgery in orthopedics is added to Elverum hospital. A strong rehabilitation offer at Elverum hospital, including a continuation of the inpatient services currently available in Ottestad (department for medical rehabilitation) which will be moved to Elverum, instead of Moelv. Necessary structural adaptations must be made. A strengthening of the offer at Tynset Hospital. Establishment of a movement center at Elverum hospital, with elective orthopedics and physical medicine and rehabilitation as a foundation for such a professional environment, together with NAV’s center for technical aids, the college’s training in physical education and relevant non-profit actors. The government is also asking Health South-East to make a separate assessment of the possibilities for interaction between the armed forces’ activity and a strengthened medical environment at Elverum hospital in the field of rehabilitation and a movement centre. Furthermore, it must be assessed how the emergency medical service can meet the needs of the armed forces, and whether there are opportunities for collaboration on, for example, education and training. The government also wants arrangements to be made for a maternity service with a maternity ward at Elverum hospital, and asks Helse Sør-East to investigate this. In line with previous decisions from Health South-East, the government wants the internal medicine emergency functions to be added to Elverum hospital for the admission area which currently has the hospital in Elverum as its local hospital. The government has also asked the Ministry of Education to initiate work with the aim of establishing its own physiotherapy education in Elverum in order to build an even stronger professional environment in Elverum linked to the movement centre. – Must be crunched The Gjøvik mayor also questions the economy, but still feels confident that the government will implement what they have now decided. – This is a project that needs to be crunched. It’s not like all the money is on the table now, says Sveen. – At the same time, I feel confident that the government would not have come up with such a decision if it was not because they actually wanted to obtain the funding needed to implement it, says the mayor of Gjøvik. MUST BE IN PLACE: The mayor of Gjøvik is happy that a decision is now on the table. – For this to be a success, there is still a lot that needs to be done, says Sveen. Photo: Lars Erik Skrefsrud / news He believes that now is when the work on the new hospital structure in Innlandet really begins. – Today we will first and foremost be happy about the decision that has been made, then we know that tomorrow work will start on the rest of the road and the project. CELEBRATION: There was a festive atmosphere in Moelv when the government presented its decision in the hospital case in Innlandet on Monday. The mayor of Gjøvik believes that people must now be happy about the decision that has been made, while the mayor of Hamar reminds that there will also be a day after what can be seen as a day of celebration. Photo: Aleksandr Nedbaev / news
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The government is proceeding with the plans for Mjøssjukehuset. The Hamar mayor has been named – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
