Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announces initiative to improve healthcare for chronic patients

Individuals diagnosed today with chronic illnesses requiring lifelong treatment often find it challenging to navigate available assistance. This is particularly true for those with COPD, diabetes, or cardiovascular diseases. To address this issue, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced a government initiative aimed at improving healthcare delivery.

Frederiksen highlighted the fragmented care many chronic patients experience, where services are scattered between general practitioners, local authorities, and hospitals, making it unclear where to seek help. The government plans to develop a more cohesive patient journey by adapting successful approaches from cancer care, ensuring that patients and their families have a clear understanding of what to expect through defined timelines for receiving timely care.

This announcement has been well-received by the COPD support group in Kalundborg, where patients gather weekly to sing. Local leader Grethe Husted expressed gratitude for the recognition of chronic patients and highlighted the existing challenges of long wait times, which can be particularly detrimental for patients with worsening conditions.

While some patient advocacy organizations, like the Lung Association, welcome the government’s proposal aimed at enhancing care for COPD patients, not all groups share the same enthusiasm. The Osteoporosis Association’s leader, Linda Garlov, voiced concern that osteoporosis, affecting approximately 200,000 people in Denmark, was overlooked in the new packages despite its status as a chronic condition.

The government anticipates that a structured framework for chronic patients will ensure they receive coordinated care in a timely manner, with a gradual rollout beginning with COPD patients, followed by those with diabetes, heart diseases, and other chronic ailments. This initiative aims to bring care closer to those who need it most, alleviating some of the burdens faced by these patients.