Good inpact after year of health guarantees
The year-old health guarantee, which introduced timeframes within the health service concerning access to consultations and treatment, has clearly reformed and improved the situation in health centres, according monitoring work carried out by the MSAH and its research wing STAKES.
The improvements have been achieved by upgrading health centre phone services, improving work sharing and making better use of new technology through the use of internet advice services. The assessment concludes that the situation in health centres is markedly better than it was before the introduction of the timeframes. A second round of timeframes, concerning access to hospital care and treatment, took effect last autumn.
One in four residents lives in an area where access to health centres is immediate and unhindered. Better still, 96% of the population live in areas where healthcare and treatment needs assessments can be given within three working days. About one percent of the population live in areas where there are continual difficulties in contacting local health centres.
Further information: Ms Kati Myllymäki, Senior Medical Officer tel. +358 9 160 73232 or 050-365 4196, MSAH and Mr Hannu Rintanen, tel. +358 9 3967 2456, Stakes