In news’s Nyhetsmorgen on Friday, the Conservative Party’s deputy leader Henrik Asheim launched a new proposal for an arrangement where two doctors must be included in the assessment to give long-term sick leave that lasts four weeks or more. Today, one medical assessment is enough. Should be assessed by two doctors, the party suggests. Both the Red Party and the Norwegian Association for General Medicine are critical. Now the Labor Party’s deputy leader and Minister of Health and Care Jan Christian Vestre will also be on the pitch. Sickly critical Jan Christian Vestre does not believe that the proposal to the Conservative Party will contribute to reducing sickness absence. – We agree that sickness absence in Norway is too high, and we are working purposefully to solve this challenge. But asking the doctors in our joint health service to do the same job twice will probably not reduce sickness absence, writes Vestre in an e-mail to news. CRITICAL: The Labor Party’s deputy leader and Minister of Health and Care Jan Christian Vestre is strongly critical of the Conservative Party’s proposal that two doctors should come in to assess long-term sick leave, such as four weeks for musculoskeletal disease. Photo: ISMAIL BURAK AKKAN / news Vestre believes the proposal shows that the Conservative Party is more concerned with systems than they are with solving problems. – However, this can lead to longer waiting times for GPs. I believe that this is a poor prioritization by the Conservative Party. Vestre says the proposal shows a lack of understanding of the everyday life of GPs and the seriousness of the shortage of health personnel. – I am surprised that the Conservative Party shows so little trust in the skilled professionals who work in our joint health service, Vestre continues. The good conversation Høyre’s deputy leader Henrik Asheim rejects that the proposal shows mistrust of Norwegian doctors: – Asking a few extra questions and thinking about an extra time is not about mistrust, but is simply about those who are on sick leave also being taken seriously. THE GOOD CONVERSATION: – When you have several doctors in, it may be that there will be a slightly different discussion than if you are sitting all alone in an office, Henrik Asheim told news Nyhetsmorgen on Friday. Photo: Alexander Kjønsø Karlsen Asheim just wants to get the good conversation started: – When you have several doctors in, it may be that there will be a slightly different discussion than if you are sitting all alone in an office. This should not be terribly bureaucratic or difficult, but it is simply to ask these control questions. Recommended by the international organization OECD, it criticizes Norway’s sick pay system in its new report, which was presented to the finance minister on Thursday morning. They recommend that exactly two doctors must assess whether someone receives sick leave instead of just one, which is the practice today. Now the Conservative Party is stepping in to implement this in Norway. Henrik Asheim clarifies that the patient will still only be examined by one doctor, but that it is important that several doctors assess whether it is possible for the patient to fully or partially return to work. – Hopeless proposal Marte Kvittum Tangen reacts to the Conservative proposal. She heads the Norwegian Association for General Medicine, and has no faith that the Conservative Party’s proposal will be the key to reducing sickness absence. – Assessing sick leave contains quite complex assessments, says Tangen to news Nyhetsmorgen. RESOURCE SOLUTION: – Assessing sick leave contains quite complex assessments, Tangen told news Nyhetsmorgen on Friday. Photo: The Tangen Medical Association points out that an important part of the sick leave work is to guide and find good solutions for each individual patient. It requires that the doctor knows the patient’s situation well, and has a good overview of what possibilities exist and are suitable for each individual situation: – Using resources to have two doctors who will familiarize themselves with the patient’s problem, I think is waste of resources. – Absolutely no effect The proposal to the Conservative Party was the topic of news’s Politisk Kvarter on Friday morning. There, Henrik Asheim faced opposition from Rødt’s Sofie Marhaug. Arnstein Mykletun, professor at the Institute of Public Health, was also present, and pointed out that the Conservative Party’s proposal has been tried in Norway without much success. RATE YOU MUST HAVE: – The rate for sick leave is only NOK 19. It says something about how little effort we think a GP should put into a sick leave process, said Arnstein Mykletun in Politisk Kvarter on Friday morning. Photo: Ole Jørgen Kolstadbråten – The research report found that it had absolutely no effect on sickness absence cases, grading, how long they lasted, and how many went on to AAP. Mykletun nevertheless believes that changes to the system must be made. There are many unfortunate incentives today. No OECD country has higher sickness absence rates than Norway. A new report shows that GPs rarely say no to a patient who wants to be sick. People on long-term sick leave should be assessed by an additional doctor, suggests Høyre. Many GPs are paid for each individual consultation and procedure they carry out. – The rate for sick leave is only NOK 19. It says something about how little effort we think a GP should put into the sick leave process. If, on the other hand, the GP says no to the sick leave, then the fee for that is nothing. And saying no takes much longer than saying yes. Published 21.06.2024, at 18.04
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Strong criticism of the Høyre’s doctor proposal – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
