The wellbeing services counties have now been operational for one calendar year. The public debate has focused mainly on challenges such as financial problems and lack of resources. Apart from this, it is worth remembering that this has been a huge change that affects us all.
The overall reform of the social welfare and health care services is very ambitious: primary health care has been transferred away from the municipalities to operate together with specialised health care, social services, and emergency services. Hardly anywhere else in the world has such a thing been attempted at the same time.
The first full year in wellbeing services counties allows for statistical analysis and comparison between counties. According to the preliminary accounts, all the wellbeing services counties were in deficit, except Helsinki, which turned a profit.
The challenge is that within three calendar years, all the counties should cumulatively start making profit. Otherwise, a wellbeing services county will be subject to an assessment procedure, and the possibility of merging it with another country cannot be ruled out.
The use of resources in the counties can be examined, for example, based on waiting lists for both primary and specialised care. After the first year, there are differences between the wellbeing services counties, and in some counties, it is challenging to achieve the care guarantee.
The wellbeing services county report ranks the counties in terms of both finances and care waiting lists. In the last quarter of 2023, South Ostrobothnia’s wellbeing services county became number one in this comparison. Despite the circumstances, the region fared reasonably well economically, and in terms of care waiting lists, South Ostrobothnia was among the absolute leaders in Finland.
In the legislation governing the wellbeing services counties, the role of the private health care sector was regulated rather tightly, so the change has created uncertainty for service providers.
For the pharmaceutical and health technology industry, organisational changes and financial uncertainty have caused headaches. However, change is almost always also an opportunity. By analysing and gaining a deeper understanding of wellbeing services counties, the private sector can find new opportunities for collaboration and growth.
The wellbeing services county report, meant for the private sector, follows key decisions and news at both national and regional level. The report analyses national statistics and ranks counties by quarter.
The best performing counties are examined in more depth in the report. The report allows the private sector to analyse the wellbeing services counties from a business perspective. You can order the report here: https://hyvinvointialueraportti.fi/
In the legislation regarding wellbeing services counties, the role of private healthcare was regulated rather strictly, so the change has created uncertainty for service providers.