– Helse Nord plans to demolish the local hospitals and the district medical service. That’s what the head of the National Center for District Medicine, Anette Fosse, says. – Only the population around Tromsø and Bodø will get better services if this goes through. Together with the medical associations in Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, and around 90 municipal doctors in the region, the National Center for District Medicine has sent an open letter to the board of Helse Nord. Helse Nord is one of four Norwegian regional health undertakings. Here they ask the board to reject the report on a new division of functions and tasks for the hospitals. They believe that Helse Nord’s proposal violates the political goals of good healthcare where people live. Could have major consequences If the proposal is adopted, the local hospitals in Northern Norway will lose their emergency services. This will result in patients having to travel longer. In addition, the local health service will have an increased burden. This is according to the head of the National Center for District Medicine, Anette Fosse. She then fears that many of the emergency patients will have to be transported to Bodø or Tromsø. – And then we have to increase the helicopter, boat and car fleet significantly, Fosse believes. The local hospitals receive little attention. These, together with the municipalities, treat around 92 per cent of all residents who need health care, the letter states. Centralization The fact that the municipalities and users have been kept out of the proceedings is also problematic in the letter. Fosse says that the local health services and municipalities must be involved in the planning all the way through. – We already reported a concern to Helse Nord before Christmas about the way they set up the work, says Fosse. Fosse believes that, in the report, emphasis has been wrongly placed only on the specialist health service. – Such a major reorganization will affect many municipalities and local hospitals, she says. Marit Lind was deputy managing director at the University Hospital of Northern Norway (UNN) before she was employed at Helse Nord. She says that the administration is now waiting for the board’s decision on the proposal for measures to help ensure sustainability in Helse Nord. Photo: Pål Hansen / news Waiting for a response from the board of Helse Nord In November 2022, Marit Lind was appointed as managing director of Helse Nord. In an e-mail to news Finnmark, Lind confirms that the matter has now been sent out and will be dealt with by the board. What she thinks about the case can be found in published chronicles. – We do not yet know what the consequences of the work we are about to start will be. Proposals must be prepared during the spring. The work must be based on good risk and vulnerability analyses, and good participation and involvement of the parties concerned, writes Lind. Lind emphasizes that she has no further comments until the board has dealt with the matter. Political support On Tuesday 21 February, the Municipal Board of Alta Municipality issued a statement on the proposed changes. They completely agree with the 90 doctors that the proposal should be scrapped. The municipal board also supports the concern that the large hospitals in Tromsø and Bodø are prioritized at the expense of local health services. As at Klinikk Alta. The local politicians do not accept that the total scope of health services in the municipality is reduced and weakened. – We ask to be involved as a dialogue and consultation party. And that consideration of the patients’ needs for local health services is taken care of, the statement says.
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Doctors fear the consequences if emergency preparedness is centralized – news Troms and Finnmark
