New act on the activities of patient and social services ombudspersons enters into force at the start of 2024

The new act will lay down provisions on the organisation of the activities of patient ombudspersons and social services ombudspersons and their independence, qualifications and duties. It will also include provisions on the processing of personal data.

The current title ‘ombudsman’ will be replaced with the gender-neutral title ‘ombudsperson’, i.e. ‘patient ombudsperson’ and ‘social services ombudsperson’.

The duties of patient ombudspersons and social services ombudspersons will largely correspond to the current duties of patient and social services ombudsmen. The ombudspersons’ duties will include advising patients, clients and their families, helping them to draw up an objection and issuing information about patient and client rights. In addition, patient and social services ombudspersons will monitor the developments of the rights and position of patients and clients and report these developments annually to the organiser of activities.

All patient and social services ombudsperson activities will be organised as public services

The wellbeing services counties and the City of Helsinki will organise the activities of patient and social services ombudspersons in public and private healthcare and social welfare, occupational healthcare and early childhood education and care. The HUS Group will organise the activities of patient ombudspersons in the healthcare services it organises and provides.

In future, private healthcare service providers will not organise patient ombudsperson activities in their healthcare units. However, they must continue to inform patients of the possibility to make an objection, process the objections they receive and see to the self-supervision of their services, for example. The aim is to harmonise the activities of patient and social services ombudspersons by centralising these activities in the wellbeing services counties.

The State will organise patient ombudsperson activities in state mental hospitals, healthcare for the Finnish Defence Forces and prison healthcare. In addition, the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health will organise patient ombudsperson activities in the healthcare and medical care services it provides.

The National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira) will keep a national register of patient and social services ombudspersons. The Regional State Administrative Agencies and Valvira will supervise the activities of patient and social services ombudspersons, just as they do now.

Improving the quality of patient and social services ombudsperson activities

A sufficient number of patient and social services ombudspersons must be appointed so that ombudsperson services will be available to patients and clients in accordance with their needs. As a rule, a person in charge of ombudsperson activities must also be appointed to guide, coordinate and develop the activities. These positions require a suitable master’s degree and knowledge of the sector in question.

The independence and impartiality of patient ombudspersons and social services ombudspersons must be ensured when they perform their duties. Their independence will be ensured by, for example, organising their activities separately from the duties related to the organisation and provision of healthcare and social welfare.

Each organiser of patient or social services ombudsperson activities will be the controller of documents produced in the course of ombudsperson activities that fall within their responsibility.

The President of the Republic is to approve the bill on Friday 14 April 2023.

The act will enter into force on 1 January 2024. The provisions on the documentation and registration of information and the provision on the registration obligation of Valvira will apply from 1 January 2025 at the latest. In addition, the transitional provision will ensure that the current patient ombudsmen can continue in their duties, regardless of the new qualification requirements.

Inquiries

Juha Luomala, Senior Ministerial Adviser, Social Affairs, [email protected]
Laura Terho, Senior Ministerial Adviser, [email protected]