Social and health care is expensive. There is no getting around it. But if we do not have a well-functioning social and health care system, can we still call our country a welfare state?
Why is social and health care in crisis?
In public discourse, we often talk about fiscal consolidation, high debt levels, and the expenditure of public institutions. But what about the other side of the coin? Even before the pandemic, we had a shortage of nurses and doctors , and the situation has only worsened since. Support functions have been cut and doctors are doing administrative work . Nurses are paid too low wages relative to the demands and level of education required by the work. The care backlog grows day by day as intensive care units are full of COVID patients and nurses have to be urgently moved away from their own wards. Mental health problems are on the rise and are the most common reason for disability pension . Social workers’ caseloads are growing . Young people are marginalised and struggling. Can we afford not to fix these problems?
What do investments in care actually produce?
By investing in nursing staff and doctors, we ensure that help will be available in the future too. By providing mental health services, we catch problems while they can still be resolved. By ensuring enough social workers, we ensure that children’s right to a safe upbringing is realised as well as possible. By preventing more serious problems, we save money, time, and effort for everyone in the long run. By removing client fees, we also take care of those in the most vulnerable positions before they face more serious problems. By providing comprehensive social services, we also look after special groups and their loved ones. All of this prevents marginalisation and keeps people in working condition for longer.
Prevention is cheaper than treatment
Of course, social and health care must also deliver the best possible value for money. The cheapest and most effective approach would be preventive measures. To give a sense of scale: in 2020, €1,176 per resident was spent on specialised medical care in Uusimaa, and €562 per resident on primary health care . A model example of effective prevention is free contraception for young people. In Vantaa, for instance, it has been shown to reduce unintended pregnancies by 36% among 15–19-year-olds and 19% among 20–24-year-olds . Another good and timely example is vaccinations. For instance, a 2-dose COVID vaccine series costs at most €29.40 while intensive care for a COVID patient costs on average €33,000 .
Social and health care is not merely an expense, but an investment in our future. Every euro spent wisely on sote is a step towards a healthy population. The growth in sote costs is not curbed by cutting services, but by providing the right services at the right time.
Do we balance the budget, or do we fix the welfare society?
I have written more about the social and health care reform: what would happen without a health centre , about abolishing healthcare fees and the role of the welfare committee .
Published in Kirkkonummen Sanomat on 16 December 2021 and in Länsiväylä on 5 January 2022.
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