The case summarized Police Superintendent Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken expresses concern about increased workload and lack of resources in the police. She receives support from Ørjan Hjortland in the Police Union. A survey carried out by Politiforum shows that 6 out of 10 police employees are considering or have considered quitting their job due to a lack of resources, low pay, increased violence and threats and increased workload. 3 out of 4 in the police believe that the workload has increased in recent years. The Norwegian Police Union believes they are training 1,600 more people to meet the targets the Storting has adopted. At the same time, several hundred newly trained police officers are without a job. Both Viken and Hjortland believe it is very paradoxical and are calling for action from the politicians. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – I see it as my duty to speak up. Whether I am heard is something else, says police superintendent Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken in Mo i Rana. Earlier in October, she published an article in several media, including Politiforum. Viken talks about the feeling of powerlessness she and her colleagues have felt for a long time. – I experience colleagues feel like throwing balls. They start on a task, but don’t get to do what they are supposed to because they have to do something else. Yes, we are an event-driven agency that has to turn around in our everyday life, but there is a lot we have to turn around right now, says Viken. – What does it do to people’s trust in the police? – I don’t think trust is weakened, but it may go beyond the expectations of what the police can deliver, for example if the processing time goes up, or we don’t have the opportunity to carry out traffic checks or school visits. A recent survey carried out by Politiforum substantiates Viken’s experience. MUCH ON THE HEART: Superintendent of Police Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken in Mo i Rana is worried that the police will not be able to do their job. Photo: The police Experiencing increased strain The survey shows, among other things, that 6 out of 10 police employees are considering or have considered quitting their job. – The reasons are a lack of resources, low pay, increased violence and threats and not least increased workload, says deputy head of the Police Union, Ørjan Hjortland. Sickness absence in the police has not been higher since 2011. In the aforementioned survey, it also appears that the majority experience an increased workload. – It is very worrying, says Hjortland. Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken in Mo i Rana has worked for over 30 years in the police. A few years ago, she returned to being a police chief, after a period as station chief in Mo i Rana. Her biggest concern is that the police will not be able to do their job. Have to put aside other tasks Among other things, it is about all the tasks the police have. For example, they must assist the health service with the transport of drug and psychiatric patients. Viken does not have to go back in time many days to come up with a descriptive example. Recently, the patrols in Mo i Rana had a total of five transport assignments. A psychiatric patient, a prisoner transport, and three special transports. – When psychiatric transports are close to 50 miles round trip, this is resource-intensive, she says. As a result, planned tasks were postponed. – For example, we had some investigators who were actually supposed to work on a rather intense case. They had to drop that work. news has previously mentioned that the police are increasingly assigned to transport psychiatric patients. – I fully understand that we must help to keep health workers safe during such assignments. We in the police are the only ones who are allowed to use force. But the more transport or assistance we provide, the more our resources are used up. – What could be the solution here, then? – We could get a separate transport service in place, for example. We should also have had better prevention and treatment of the patients locally, so that there were fewer transports. – Her description matches the experience in general in the police, says Acting Deputy Chief of Police in Nordland Police District, Arne Hammer. This is how everyday life is in the Nordland police district – There is a match between what Hege Viken describes and the general experience in the police, says deputy police chief Arne Hammer in the Nordland police district. He says that they often see drug and psychiatric patients fall between two chairs. – It is often difficult to say who is responsible for them. In recent years, we have worked a lot to remove the uncertainty around which areas of responsibility the police have and which areas of responsibility the health service has, he says. – It is a lot about ensuring good interaction between the police, the municipal health service and the specialist health service. – What consequences do such transport assignments have for your job? – It burdens us in many ways. It may result in us not being allowed to take on any of the assignments that appear. In addition, we have to take some of these transport assignments overtime. – Do you have too many tasks compared to how many people you have available? – We have a comprehensive social mission which means that we cannot simply opt out of tasks. That is why it is important that we have to prioritize correctly and prioritize the most important tasks the highest, says Hammer. He agrees with Hege Viken and the Police Union that it is a paradox that several hundred newly trained police are without a job. – When we first train people, then we have to give them jobs where we have a need. The police in Nordland spend more than a double-digit million amount on overtime every year. – We depend on being able to use overtime. We have many cases where we have to pool resources and have to spend overtime. At the same time, we must not burden the employees too much. – Would you have used less overtime if there were more people? – Yes, but it would never go away. Arne Hammer, on the other hand, does not agree with Hege Viken that those who make the decisions regarding the police’s priorities do not have good enough contact with the police who are out in the field. – We have a good and honest dialogue with the Norwegian Police Directorate. My experience is that the collaboration gets better and better with each passing year. Ørjan Hjortland in the Police Federation also understands Viken’s frustration. At the same time, he says that the police and health recently went through the guidelines for cooperation, and that he feels that it works well. – It is important that health must get enough resources, so that they can look after the mentally ill in the best possible way. One should also assess the legislation and current practice so that those who are mentally ill get the assistance and help they need, he says. Both Hjortland and Viken are clear that the police need more people. A LOT HAPPENS: Ørjan Hjortland in the Norwegian Police Union says that their working day is constantly changing. – We are faced with a changed security picture in view of the war in Ukraine, terrifying gang problems in our neighboring country and crises that are replaced by new crises. Photo: The Norwegian Police Union A long way to go The Storting has decided that the police should have two police officers per 1,000 inhabitants. – If we are to achieve this, we must employ 1,600 more police officers. We have almost 500 graduates from the Police Academy who can go straight to work, but unfortunately there are no funds to employ them, says Hjortland. According to Hjortland, it will cost around NOK 460 million over a four-year period. Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken still believes that it will pay off for the police to employ more people. – It should be better to increase the basic staff than to pay them all the overtime. In addition, there is severe wear and tear on those who are left with an increased workload. Police officers are loyal, but there is a limit to how much you can squeeze out of a police officer. Deputy Chief of Police Arne Hammer thinks it is paradoxical that several hundred newly trained police are without a job. – When we first train people, then we have to give them jobs where we have a need. The police in Nordland spend more than a double-digit million amount on overtime every year. – We depend on being able to use overtime. We have many cases where we have to pool resources and have to spend overtime. At the same time, we must not burden the employees too much, says. – Would you have used less overtime if there were more people? – Yes, but it would never go away. Ørjan Hjortland in the Norwegian Police Federation believes that the current situation has major consequences. Closed after four years – Last week, proposals for the state budget for 2024 were presented and it does not seem as if the government is taking the seriousness of the situation into account, says Hjortland. The government plans to increase the police budget by approximately DKK 2 billion. The Norwegian Police Union believes it is not enough. – The police must continue downsizing at the same time that we are faced with a changed security picture. We have to prioritize hard and police services are reduced. It has consequences for us as an agency, but it also has consequences for the citizens, says Hjortland. He refers, among other things, to Operation Spiderweb in the Sør-West police district, which is now being closed down. In the course of four years, they have caught over 100 online rapists. – The Norwegian police have a high level of trust, but it is clear that it does something to the public’s trust in the police when it becomes increasingly difficult for the police to carry out their social mission. Hege Susanne Kvalvik Viken feels that the frustration is not only found within the police. – Too painful to talk about After she published her chronicle, she received a lot of feedback. – It is from employees in the entire public system, both police, health and child protection. People who feel the same, and people who want me to tell more. – What does that say about public Norway? – I think it is time to evaluate a bit and assess whether we should change course a bit. Viken feels that many of the decisions that determine everyday life in the police are made without sufficient knowledge of everyday life. – What does it do to you when you feel this powerlessness? – The worst thing is to see those who ask for help, who are in terrible pain, who do not get the help they need. And once we can help them, it is sometimes too late. Unfortunately. – Would you like to go into more detail about it? – No. It will hurt too much. The Ministry of Justice has not responded to news’s questions in connection with this case.
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Police chief takes issue with how both police and health are organized – news Nordland
