“Government concern is not a panacea”

It was already clear from the Tidö agreement that the government and the cooperation party, the Sweden Democrats, wanted to explore how the state could take more responsibility for health care. In June, the issue will be examined by a parliamentary committee consisting of the Riksdag, but chaired by Vårdanalys director general Jean-Luc af Geijerstam.

But will care become better and more equitable just because the government takes over? That was the main theme of a panel discussion in Almedalen on Thursday.

The medical association, which has long called for increased government control, was positive, but Sweden’s municipalities and regions, SKR, for example, showed less cheerful faces.

Another person unhappy with the news is Lisa Belling, director of think tank Arena Idé.

– I think we all agree that sometimes nationalization or increased government control is highlighted as a kind of solution to everything. But it is clear that SKR has reason to worry that while they wait for this one-saluter nationalization solution that provides good care for all, solves access problems, and solves shortages, the solution to many problems is being pushed in front of them. Maintenance locations.

Among others, he pointed to Great Britain, where care is under the state.

– You have the same issues as us with equality and accessibility.

He also emphasized the democratic aspect.

– Who will decide whether BB is allowed to stay in Sollefteå? People who live literally? Or a politician in Stockholm, the Riksdag? Democratic control risks ending up far from citizens, Lisa Belling said.

Sophia Rydgren Stahl, president of the Medical Association, argued against this.

– Regions often talk about closer ties between voters and elected officials. At the same time, most people do not even know who is the chairman of the Zonal Board in their region. The intimacy they want to imply may not actually exist, he said.

A larger state responsibility would make it easier to solve the difficulties in Swedish health care, he said.

– Sweden needs doctors, not region X or Y. “We see the state very clearly has to step up and take full responsibility,” he said.

Stockholm’s opposition regional councilor Irene Svenonius (M) agreed and wanted everyone living in Sweden to feel like they live in the same country and have the same access to care.

Another debated question is what will happen to the regions if care leadership is transferred to the state.

– It should be seen, but you cannot have any political level – municipalities, regions or state – for the sake of it. If we decide that a changed leadership is better for citizens, we should not give way to that idea by caring about regional politicians, says Irene Svenonius.

Hopes and fears were also discussed. Many panelists believed that increasing government management would lead to better efficiency in the long run.

– Today, the regions themselves can decide what the correct number of AT, BT and ST seats are, and year after year, we see the number of services being underestimated. But if we don’t have paramedics today, we won’t have any specialists in the future, said Sophia Rytgren Stahl.

Among the concerns was an “even heavier administrative superstructure” where much of today’s reporting requirements are kept, but more added.

– Administration, follow-up and documentation become a kind of self-fulfilling machine that only eats up time. It’s an anxiety cloud, she said.

Lakartidningen.se 2023-06-30