The children’s and youth department at Helse Førde treats children with everything from cancer to neurological diseases, meningitis, epilepsy and head injuries. Illnesses that lead to long hospital stays. Not just for the sick child, but for the whole family. But when the new hospital in Førde was opened in August this year, all the beds had new patient rooms, except for the children’s ward. – It is very strange that they have not thought about that part, says Mika Mattson. The new hospital in Førde was opened in August. All the beds were given a relative’s room, except for the children’s ward. Photo: Håvard Heggen / news In the past year, Mika, the roommate, and the children Minea (3) and Maiken (1) have spent more than three months in various hospitals. Shortly after birth, Maiken developed a serious type of infantile epilepsy which causes her to have frequent, uncontrolled spasms. In addition to the hospital in Førde, the trip went to Rikshospitalet in Oslo, Haukeland in Bergen and the Special Hospital for Epilepsy in Bærum – for clarification and follow-up. All have relatives’ rooms or living rooms in the ward. Having access to a relative’s room, at a short distance, is crucial when you are away for a long time, Mika believes. – It is so important to be able to recover. Have a coffee or talk to others. Just to get out of the patient room for a bit. It is also a good room to have when you receive tough messages from a doctor or nurse. Before Christmas, the family had to be in the hospital in Førde. Mika Mattsson says it is tiring with long hospital stays, and that the relatives’ room is important to be able to withdraw a little. Both children have spent long periods in hospital in the past year. One as a patient, the other as a relative. Big sister had to celebrate last Christmas at the central hospital in Førde. Both the playroom and family room mean that you don’t have to be together all the time. Criticized A few weeks after the opening, the hospital management in Førde receives criticism for the room layout at the new hospital, and the lack of services for parents of children with serious illnesses. The patient representative wrote in a letter to the hospital management that they had been informed that the children’s ward should not have its own room for relatives, and that “the room that could be relevant for this should be used as a break room for the staff at the Women’s Clinic”. – This is a family that has a very tough time in the first place. We are particularly talking about children who are seriously ill, and who need to be at the ward for a long time, says patient and user representative in Vestland, Ingrid Aanderud Sælen. The management chose a staff room/break room for the employees at the Women’s Clinic. As a result, caregivers do not get their own room. Photo: Privat She sees similarities between this case and the TV campaign for 2024. There, the money goes to family homes for children with serious illnesses, which will ensure that families can live as “normal” a life as possible, in an extraordinary situation. – As a relative of a child, you are often present at the hospital around the clock. Then they need a place where they can receive visitors or talk to others in the same situation in peace and quiet, without having to visit the canteen. The parents’ need is also enshrined in law, under the “Regulation on children’s stay in a health institution”: “It is often a great burden for parents to have children admitted to an institution and to be with them during their stay. That is why it is important that the parents have access to a room where they can be alone for a bit, relax etc.” Other places established In other departments of the new hospital in Førde, relatives’ rooms have been established. This applies, among other things, to medical inpatient care, orthopedic and geriatric inpatient care, cancer and surgery – and neurology and rehabilitation. But not at the new Women’s Clinic, which consists of maternity, maternity and children’s departments. There are also no canteens in the new building. To get to the main canteen, patients have to go to the old building, which is also on another floor. Neurology and rehabilitation have been given their own rooms for relatives. Carers’ room for cancer and surgical bedsides. Carers at orthopedic and geriatric bedsides can use this room. Previously, in the old hospital building, relatives had access to a rather large relatives’ room. This room is currently used as a meeting room. The relatives’ room in the old hospital building is today used as a meeting room. Photo: Privat Different healthcare companies have different approaches to whether or not to build relatives’ rooms in connection with new building projects. At the new Hammerfest hospital, for example, there are no dedicated rooms for relatives in the children’s and youth unit, news is informed. With the new, planned Normøre and Romsdal Hospital, there will be relatives’ rooms on the ward. At the new hospital in Stavanger, there are also plans for a lounge/dining room in the children’s ward. A new hospital is also planned in Drammen. Here, a living room with a kitchenette and sofa has been set up in connection with the department, which relatives also have access to. Haugesund Hospital does not have its own bereaved room in the ward today, but there are plans for its own room in the new children’s ward, which is planned to be completed in 2026. news asked Health Minister Jan Christian Vestre (Ap) whether it is unproblematic that some new hospitals have bereaved rooms, while others do not have it. State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng (Ap) replied: – The new hospitals that are planned and built must comply with the regulations on children’s stay in institutions, and our impression is that the project takes far greater care of the needs of children and their parents than they old build up to. – Built too small Company trustee Lena Thorsnes of the Norwegian Nurses’ Association says this has become an important issue for staff at the children’s ward in Førde. She says that already shortly after the opening, several parents have asked if there is a living room or lounge where they can sit. – As it is now, they use the canteen, otherwise they stay in the room throughout the day. At the same time, she understands that employees at the Women’s Clinic would prefer to have the rooms they need nearby, in order to save time and resources. – The question we ask ourselves is whether we have built too little. Lena Thorsnes of the Norwegian Nurses Association says parents of sick children always ask staff if there is a sitting room or lounge where they can sit. Photo: Oddmund Reisæter Haugen / news New hospital building in Førde (Livabygget) Area approx. 13,000 square metres, a total of 123 bedrooms, 107 of which are equipped with beds for relatives. Formal takeover of the building is 20 August 2024. The first year after takeover is the trial operation phase of the building. In the autumn of 2024, we will receive the first patients in the inpatient unit in the Livabygget. The building has almost only single rooms with a dependent bed. There are also family rooms at the women’s clinic and the children’s ward, both of which are on the fifth floor. Ten operating theaters will ensure far better work flow and utilization of capacity, together with a new, modern and highly automated sterile center on the floor below. The work processes will be made simpler by notification and overview on digital boards and smartphones. There will be a new waiting area for patients, and in connection with the emergency department, an observation post will be established to clarify incoming patients. Source: Helse Førde Defends the offer The manager at the hospital says the offer for patients in all departments has now improved, as single rooms with a bed for relatives have been added. In the reply letter to the Patient and User Ombudsman, it is shown that “the issue of relatives’ room was up for discussion several times.” The managing director of Helse Førde, Arve Varden, writes that the children’s department has been merged with the Women’s Clinic’s new bed post, which means that it has been “necessary to assess priorities”. – So then it is the merger itself that causes a lack of space? – Yes, in a way you can say that in relation to the fact that we have been completely open to the fact that when we moved into the building, we should reduce the number of beds at Førde central hospital, says Varden to news. He points out that the entire moving process must be evaluated in the run-up to Christmas, and that this may be a matter they need to look into more closely. The managing director of Helse Førde, Arve Varden, believes that the offer for patients and relatives has improved overall. Photo: Geir Bjarte Hjetland / news The reason that there was room for relatives’ rooms in the other departments was that they were planned in a different way, under a different project. – In this project, there was not the same degree of complexity in prioritizing space, and on these floors we were fortunately able to prioritize patient and family beds, writes Varden. The patient representative is not satisfied with the answer. – It has been prioritized that the employees at the Women’s Clinic should have a break room. It has gone to the cost of the relatives’ room in the children’s ward. It is difficult to understand. Patient and user ombudsman, Ingrid Aanderud Sælen, is disappointed that parents with seriously ill children no longer get their own family room. Photo: Oddmund Reisæter Haugen / news Published 03.11.2024, at 17.27
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The patient and user ombudsman criticizes the new hospital in Førde – news Vestland
