If HUS’s proposal is implemented, one around-the-clock prehospital emergency care unit and the Jokela unit will be completely shut down. In addition to this, the Peijas prehospital emergency care unit, which currently operates around the clock, would shift to only maintaining on-call readiness from 9:00 to 21:00. Furthermore, a third prehospital emergency care unit in Järvenpää, which currently operates around the clock, would shift to maintaining around-the-clock readiness only at weekends and daytime readiness from Monday to Thursday.
HUS’s cutbacks to prehospital emergency care also affect Western Uusimaa, as the night-time prehospital emergency care unit currently located in Inkoo is being shut down and the daytime on-call operations of the other prehospital emergency care unit in Tammisaari and Lohja are being moved to Inkoo and Ventelä.
Tehy President Millariikka Rytkönen says that HUS's uncaring demands for cutbacks endanger well-being at work and employee coping.
– How does the employer intend to take care of the coping and well-being at work of the remaining paramedics after the cutbacks as their workload increases, she asks.
Rytkönen says that when the availability of prehospital emergency care, especially at night, is significantly reduced as a result of cutbacks, the ones to suffer also include the citizens in need of prehospital emergency care.
– Cutting night-time prehospital emergency care is a drastic measure. In the future, citizens will apparently be expected to fall seriously ill only during office hours. Minister of Social Affairs and Health Kaisa Juuso has remarked that ‘you can always call the emergency number,’ but now the Minister also needs to take responsibility for her words so that help is actually available, Rytkönen states.
HUS is responsible for organising prehospital emergency care, but HUS's funding for prehospital emergency care comes from the wellbeing services counties and the City of Helsinki. Millariikka Rytkönen considers baffling the way in which the health of citizens is currently being toyed with as a result of the Finnish Government maintaining a constant financing gap for the wellbeing services counties while HUS and the wellbeing services counties shift responsibilities onto each other.
Tehy fully supports its members who are affected by the current cooperation negotiations.
Enquiries:
Tehy specialist, Master of Laws with court training Jarkko Pehkonen, [email protected],
Tel. +358 40 531 5464