North Savo plans to cut hours at Iisalmi and Varkaus clinics
Monday 12th October 2026 on 16:30 in
Finland
North Savo wellbeing services county is considering shorter opening hours at emergency clinics in Iisalmi and Varkaus, with the changes potentially taking effect at the start of next year, Yle reports.
The clinics are currently open daily from 8am to 10pm. Under the proposed schedule, Varkaus would close at 6pm on weekdays and Iisalmi at 8pm. Both would close at 6pm on weekends and public holidays.
The proposal has been presented to staff and was justified by the need to save money and difficulties recruiting doctors. The county declined to comment before decisions have been made.
The county’s committee for general services will receive a report on the proposal on October 15 and is due to decide on it on October 29. The county executive board could then take up the matter and make a new decision.
The overnight emergency services in Iisalmi and Varkaus were discontinued at the start of this year, with overnight care moved to Kuopio. The two clinics are based at hospitals.
Nea Tolvanen, a staff representative for the Tehy health and social care union, said she was concerned that shorter shifts could make it harder to recruit doctors. Varkaus temporarily closed its emergency clinic at 6pm in July and early August because of a shortage of doctors. Tolvanen said the public response was very negative, with people feeling they had not received enough care, and that staff had also been strained.
Marja-Leena Kiljunen, a chief shop steward for the Super union, called for a more detailed assessment of the actual savings before a decision. She said patients might still need to be transported to KYS.
Merja Viinikainen, a chief shop steward for the JHL public-sector union, said the plan was particularly worrying for Varkaus. She questioned why its clinic would close earlier than Iisalmi’s and said shorter hours could increase the workload for emergency medical services, which transported more patients to Kuopio during the summer closures. She also raised concerns about staff workloads in Kuopio.