In summer, tourists flock to the idyllic islands in the sea gap on the Romdal coast, Ona, Orten and Sandøya. But in autumn and winter the conditions are tough, with strong storms and a ferry that is often cancelled. Now the municipal doctor Sven Walter calls out a warning. – I am worried about the people who very likely need transport to hospital during the winter, says Walter. About 50 people live on the three islands. It is especially on Sandøya that the residents are old. Sven Walter is the municipal doctor for Fjørtoft and Sandøy. Photo: private I think people should move If the weather is too bad for a helicopter in an emergency situation, the patient must be transported in an ambulance boat. Walter believes that the boat trip with M/S Dr Riiber can make the patients even worse. – It is a nice sea boat, but it is small and with high waves the transport can be very uncomfortable, says Walter. He has therefore given advice to the elderly in the danger zone to move from the islands in the autumn and winter months. – During the period in which this applies, it is best that they stay more centrally. Where they can get to hospital more easily, says the municipal doctor. He also believes that it is obvious that the municipality cannot provide as good health care on a daily basis to those who live far away. There are very few ferry departures during a day. The patients are picked up by the ambulance boat M/S Dr Riiber. It will be replaced in 2024. Photo: Hans-Olav Landsverk / news People feel pressured The Velforeininga på Sandøya wrote in a letter to the municipality that they believe the proposal for the municipal doctor has brought unrest over the whole island and made people feel unwell. People feel they are being pressured to move. “It has great quality of life to live at home in a local environment where everyone knows each other with the rest of the family present, and which also means a lot to everyone else who lives on the island. It should be unnecessary to elaborate further on this. We have seen many examples that when people move from here, they often coincide with a clearly worse quality of life,” the letter says. Health services where they live Municipal manager in Ålesund, Synnøve Vasstrand Synnes, apologizes if residents feel pressured to move. The municipality must provide people with municipal health services where they live. If there is a greater need for health care, she says that it is safer to build closer round-the-clock services. Even when acute incidents occur, it is more difficult in the sea gap. – Transport will always be a challenge for those who live in the island communities. This is the health authority’s responsibility, says Synnes. Clinic manager in Helse Møre og Romsdal, Lars Erik Sjølmæling, says that Dr Riiber has performed ambulance services for the islands for 18 years and that it is strange that the municipal doctor is addressing the issue now. In January 2024, the health authority will replace the ambulance boat with a double-hulled boat, i.e. a catamaran. – The advantage is better space, better comfort and higher average speed in bad weather compared to today’s ambulance boats, says Sjømæling. There are about 50 inhabitants on the three islands of Ona, Orten and Sandøya. Photo: Roar Strøm Do people think they follow the advice The municipal doctor believes that the residents have no reason to be offended by his advice. He understands that it can also have a financial consequence for the patients to rent another place for a few months, but thinks there is no problem – These are reasonable arguments and I assume that they will follow my advice, says Walter.
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Municipal doctor Sven Walter warns patients against living on Ona, Orten and Sandøya in winter – news Møre og Romsdal – Local news, TV and radio
