In Halland, a working time model has been adopted where midwives who work full time in maternity care work 34 hours a week for a full-time salary.
It is only during the summer months that they increase their working hours to 38.25 hours a week.
- The midwives who have taken part in the working hours model are positive.
They get a little more time for recovery in this way, says Maud Ankardal, operations manager for the Women's Clinic at Halland Hospital.
When the region has told about the model for other midwives, many have shown interest.
- It is not widespread but many have become interested in it, says Maud Ankardal.
The union: Interested in us for a long time
In the Stockholm Region, many midwives have resigned in protest against the working conditions at the birth.
In response, the regional management has presented measures to improve the situation.
One of the measures is to review the schedule and working hours.
Eva Nordlund, chairman of the Midwives' Association, believes that a shortened working week is an alternative that could ease the pressure on midwives in Stockholm as well.
- What Halland does with the working time model is a shard of a solution.
It can look different how to solve the situation and there are different conditions in the country.
But absolutely, that model has interested us for a long time, says Eva Nordlund.
There are still problems
In a report from the National Board of Health and Welfare in February, only two regions stated that they did not have a shortage of midwives in their activities.
It was Halland and Jämtland Härjedalen who appreciated that they had enough midwives.
Today, the situation has changed.
- It is not a really correct picture today, because we lack some midwives in maternity care, says Maud Ankardal in Halland.
There has also been a shortage of midwives in the Jämtland Härjedalen Region since the report.
- That task has changed, I can only be responsible for inpatient care where I work, but of course we have a shortage there, says Lena Bäck, unit manager area Kvinna.