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Denmark presents plan to hire 100 new staff at maternity wards

100 new staff at maternity wards nationally will contribute to improved conditions for new mothers across Denmark, according to a political plan.

Published: 10 May 2022 16:27 CEST
pregnant woman
Government investment aims to improve conditions for women who give birth in Denmark. Photo: Ida Marie Odgaard/Ritzau Scanpix

The plan was presented by the government and allied parties on the left on Monday. The Alternative and Christian Democratic parties are also in support of the deal. It thereby has an overall parliamentary majority behind it.

The political deal sets aside 80 million kroner over a three-year period to be spent on recruiting and retaining midwives. It will be designed to stop the loss of staff in the sector seen in the Greater Copenhagen region in particular.

It will also give first-time mothers the option of staying in hospitals for up to two days after giving birth, should they choose to do so.

Mothers who choose not to stay at hospitals will have the right to a home visit post-birth.

Currently, mothers in some areas are discharged from hospital shortly after giving birth – within hours in some cases.

The new right for first-time mothers to stay in hospital for two days will come into effect this year, with the parties behind the deal to meet in 2024 with a view to extending it to all births.

The deal aims to improve working conditions for midwives and other maternity ward staff as part of the drive to recruit and retain them. Its practical details will be agreed with Danske Regioner, the representative board for the regional health authorities.

Funding for the investment in neonatal care in Denmark was put aside in the 2022 budget, with the agreement between parties on its spending now finalised.

A total of 475 million kroner will be spent on the area up to 2025.

“Everyone has the right to good care when giving birth and it has long been clear that conditions in the maternity sector must be improved,” Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said in a ministry statement.

Lis Munk, chairwoman of the Danish Midwives’ Association (Jordemoderforeningen), welcomed the agreement and noted “a recognition that there is not (currently) the number of staff that we need”, but also said that as many as 200 new midwives may be needed. 

“Nowadays, women in labour may well find that there is neither a room nor a midwife for you when you need one,” Munk told news wire Ritzau.

“And then you end up being alone for a large part of the birth,” she said.

Denmark saw considerable debate in 2021 relating to the standard of maternity care in the country, with several cases of mothers and staff describing what they considered below-par conditions. These include reports by broadcaster DR and magazine Femina of Caesarian sections that were necessary because problems during births were not detected early enough, because of a lack of adequate staffing.

Other criticism related to new mothers being discharged from hospitals within hours of giving birth and before they felt ready to leave.

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RESIDENCE PERMITS

Foreign spouses already in Denmark will not get back 57,000 kroner deposit 

Danes and foreign partners who have already deposited up to 114,000 kroner to qualify for family reunification, will not be allowed to withdraw some of the money when a new law halves the required security in July, Denmark's immigration service has told The Local.

Published: 15 May 2024 09:47 CEST
Updated: 15 May 2024 11:50 CEST
Foreign spouses already in Denmark will not get back 57,000 kroner deposit 

The new law on spousal reunion, which should be voted through parliament on May 30th, proposes that the bankgaranti, or bank guarantee, the deposit couples need to leave in an account accessible to their local municipality, be halved from 114,000 kroner to 57,000 kroner (both 2024 level) from July 1st.  

However, according to the Danish Immigration Service, couples who have already completed the process before July 1st and have already deposited the full guarantee will not be able to draw down their deposit to the new, lower, sum. 

“A concluded case resulting in a residence permit issued prior to the proposal is not subject to the new rules. Therefore, it will only be possible to reduce the collateral guarantee requirement with the amounts applicable before the amendment of the law,”  the immigration service told The Local in a written statement. 

The purpose of the bank guarantee is ostensibly to ensure that municipalities can draw from the fund to pay for costs such as unemployment benefits, if the family reunified person needs them.

But the requirement may have little practical effect because foreign nationals resident under family reunification rules are likely to lose their residence status anyway if unemployed, negating the need for social welfare benefits.

READ ALSO: What’s in the new law on bringing a foreign spouse to Denmark?

The immigration service told The Local that anyone whose application had yet to receive a decision at the time the new law was presented to parliament on April 11th will be invited to request that the decision on their application be delayed until after July 1st, so that their application will only need to meet the new more lenient rules. 

In these situations, it said, the spouse already residing in Denmark will generally be contacted via their Digital Post and asked whether they want the decision on their case to be delayed.  

Couples who have had their request for family reunion rejected “due to non-compliance with the current requirement for collateral guarantee or the current language requirement”, will be allowed to sbmit a new application under the new rules after July 1st.

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