The hospital's CEO on the closure of department 29: "The need is about to decline"

As SVT Nyheter Södertälje was able to reveal earlier on Wednesday, an extra board meeting was held at Södertälje Hospital where, as part of the savings measures, among other things, it was decided to close ward 29. An emergency medical geriatric ward with 14 care places that relieved the emergency room in, January.

According to the hospital management, these are six geriatric sites that disappear in connection with the closure. These will be covered by, among other things, better cooperation with the hospitals in Stockholm and better cooperation with primary care and the municipalities.

"Taking these factors into account, we have come to the conclusion that we can reduce with six geriatric care places," says Christophe Pedroletti, CEO of Södertälje Hospital.

But this department was launched less than a year ago as a way to relieve the emergency and perhaps especially for the elderly with multiple illnesses. Doesn't that need remain?

- It has changed since the Stockholm region will now open more geriatric care places in the southern part of the county, combined with the fact that we have partly developed this care so that we see that the need is on the decline, for example through shorter care times. . Among other things, we see good cooperation with the municipalities which we hope to continue.

Doesn't it cost a lot to shut down such a newly opened department?

- We received an increased assignment from the health care administration to open ten new care places and we received funding for it. Then the situation was different. Now you should open new care places instead. We have come into a whole new situation and we have to adapt to that. We already knew then that a department with 14 seats was not cost effective.

And the Södertalje residents who are worried that their relatives will stay at the accommodation when they are sick or sent to a hospital in Stockholm instead? What do you say to them?

- We will take care of the patients who need our care and we will continue our good cooperation with both primary care and the municipalities. We will also continue to develop the hospital's processes for, among other things, interventions in the home and interventions in the hospital so that you can feel completely safe, says Christophe Pedroletti.