Never before have so many Norwegians lacked a GP as this year. 153,000 across the country have no doctor they can go to over time. The desperate shortage of fasting doctors is causing prices to rise. Aure municipality on Nordmøre now pays NOK 2,217 per hour for one of its substitutes. That means 17,736 kroner for an eight-hour shift. – It has always been expensive, but this is a new record. I think it is absolutely awful, says unit leader Geir Nielsen in Aure municipality. He emphasizes that this is the price the municipality pays to the Swedish staffing agency, and that he does not know what the experienced doctor’s salary is. Unit leader for health and family services in Aure municipality, Geir Nielsen. Photo: Privat Aukar year by year For over five years, the rural municipality on Nordmøre has struggled to find regular doctors for its 3,500 inhabitants. The answer has been to go to the temp agency, and there prices have risen steadily. Nielsen says the situation has worsened year by year and that the municipalities are bidding on each other to find substitutes. Recently, the unit leader said no thanks when the Swedish staffing agency offered a doctor at 2,500 kroner per hour. – It is a very undesirable situation. It is money that should actually have gone to other municipal tasks, he says. In addition, the substitutes do not always meet the requirements. – It can be doctors who come from abroad, recent graduates or who have been away from work for a while. This year we have had to say no to substitutes who do not have good enough professional knowledge, he says. In Aure municipality there are two medical centers. One in Tustna, and one in Aure. Photo: Marius André Jenssen Stenberg / news One million extra doctor visits in one year State Secretary Ole Henrik Krat Bjørkholt (Labor Party) says that it is not a desirable development that more municipalities must seek help from the temp agency. He says that the result is, among other things, that Norwegians go to the doctor more. – Part of the basic problem in the GP crisis is that doctors have had too much to do. Today’s scheme has gone from bad to worse, says Bjørkholt. According to Statistics Norway, the number of doctor consultations increased by one million only from 2020 to 2021. State Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Care Services, Ole Henrik Krat Bjørkholt (Labor Party) says that the GP crisis is at the top of the ministry’s priority list. Photo: Esten Borgos, Borgos Foto AS – We want a stable GP scheme, which ensures the great health benefits of having the same GP over a long period of time, he says. In next year’s state budget, Bjørkholt promises that they will come up with concrete measures that improve the situation for municipalities, doctors and residents. Talking in the local community The inhabitants of Aure follow the GP situation with excitement and despair. Recently, they were informed that medical checks and answers to examinations may be postponed because the medical office is unable to receive more this summer. – When I meet them, they can ask if there will be new doctors soon, or that they hope to get someone who can speak Norwegian. It is clearly something that preoccupies the inhabitants, he says. From the autumn, the municipality has ensured full medical coverage, through a one-year temporary position. But in the future, they want someone who will be stuck in the municipality.
ttn-69
GP crisis in Norway – Aure municipality fears they have to downgrade some patients – news Møre og Romsdal – Local news, TV and radio
