As Finland's health and social services struggle with budget deficits and a crisis of resources, leaders from various welfare regions are advocating for cuts to wellbeing services, according to a report by Helsingin Sanomat.
Timo Aronkytö, the director of the Vantaa-Kerava welfare region, told HS that about 10 percent of current social and health services should be completely cut. He said the responsibilities should be shifted to individuals themselves or to the third sector, which refers to non-profit organisations and volunteer groups.
An example of a service that could be handled by individuals or left to the third sector, according to Aronkytö, could be transportation services for the elderly.
HS conducted a survey asking welfare regions which statutory obligations they think should be dismantled for savings, receiving responses from eighteen regions and Helsinki.
Staffing ratios defined by the number of clients per worker should be abolished altogether, according to Sanna Svahn, director of the West Uusimaa wellbeing county.
Currently, one social worker can manage up to 30 children in child protection, and there must be 0.65 caregivers per elderly person, with plans to reduce this to 0.6. Many welfare region heads advocate eliminating these limits and have issued a joint statement calling for such a policy.
Marina Kinnunen, director of the wellbeing services county of Pohjanmaa, opined that procedures unrelated to treating illnesses, such as vasectomies and knee arthroscopies, should be avoided, emphasising the need to focus on effective treatments with proven health benefits.
Several regions propose eliminating treatment guarantees for specialised medical care in non-life-threatening situations, which are currently set at six months.
The regional leaders also suggest restricting school health check-ups to those in need, rather than making them a universal right. The same approach is proposed for maternal and child health clinic checks at specific ages.
Additionally, they aim to reduce the number of required statements and certificates, freeing up more time for effective patient care.
The leaders also acknowledged that implementing cuts is challenging but necessary and that reducing obligations and workload is essential to lower costs.
Book reveals behind-the-scenes Nato drama
Finnish papers are discussing a new book by Swedish journalists which reveals that communication between former Prime Minister Sanna Marin and President Sauli Niinistö during Sweden's Nato membership process were perceived as mixed messages in Sweden.
The book, titled Högt över havet (High Above the Sea) written by Maggie Strömberg and Torbjörn Nilsson reveals that while Finland played a leading role in the Nato discussions, it was Marin, rather than Niinistö, who drove the process, which left Swedish officials puzzled.
A Kauppalehti report analysing the book says that Andersson was surprised by Marin's eagerness to meet on the issue, as she believed Marin opposed Nato membership. They viewed her as a young leftist feminist who had previously suggested that Finland would likely not join Nato during her tenure.
During her meeting with Andersson, Marin highlighted the historical context and a poll showing 53 percent support for Nato membership among Finns. Andersson was surprised by Marin's emphasis on this single poll, given that only two parties in Finland supported membership at the time.
The book recounts a meeting with Andersson, Marin, and Niinistö, during which the tensions between Niinistö and Marin were noted.
Niinistö's message was clear: “Hold your horses,” as he warned of the risks and threats associated with Nato membership, which had been a topic in Finnish media that spring.
This was likely confusing for the Swedes, who had not been particularly eager for Nato membership themselves and assumed Finland felt the same.
The book notes that many Swedes underestimated the pace of Finland's move toward Nato membership under Marin's leadership, prompting Foreign Minister Ann Linde to remark in an internal party video conference, "Damn Finland, now we might have to join too."
Weather turns warmer again
After a chilly weekend, Finland is in for some unexpected warm weather again, with southern regions potentially hitting 20 degrees, tabloid Iltalehti reported.
With warm air flowing in from southern Europe, temperatures in southern and central Finland will rise to 10–15 degrees, while northern areas will remain cooler, at 4–9 degrees on Monday.
Tuesday will bring even warmer conditions, with highs of up to 19 degrees in the south. On Wednesday, temperatures may reach 20 degrees in southern and eastern regions.
Later in the week, temperatures will generally range from 10 to 16 degrees, with a drop expected over the weekend.
However, wet and windy autumn weather will dominate most of Lapland, with some areas even expected to receive 5 to 15 centimetres of snow early in the week.
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