Oslo politician demands answers after 20-year-old left without rehabilitation following severe illness

A 20-year-old woman who survived five months on a ventilator after anorexia led to multi-organ failure has been left without coordinated rehabilitation for nearly a year, Dagbladet reports, prompting an Oslo city councilor to demand answers from health authorities.

Rikke, who has not left her childhood home since June last year, remains severely weakened and largely unable to move, according to her mother, Susanne Wien Offermann. Despite multiple referrals to rehabilitation facilities—all of which declined admission—she receives only two 45-minute physiotherapy sessions per week from her local district.

“It feels like no one cares what happens to me,” Rikke told Dagbladet. “I just want it all to be over.”

Sunnaas Hospital offered outpatient rehabilitation, where staff would treat her at home, but her family considers this insufficient. Oslo University Hospital, where she was previously treated, and her local district, Søndre Nordstrand, declined to comment. The district stated it was committed to providing high-quality services and took feedback seriously.

Siavash Mobasheri, group leader for the Red Party in Oslo’s city council and deputy chair of the health and social committee, called the case “heartbreaking” and accused the system of failing those with complex needs spanning rehabilitation, mental health, physical health, autism, and eating disorders.

“When people don’t fit neatly into one category, the risk is too high that responsibility gets fragmented,” Mobasheri said. He argued the city must take direct responsibility for coordination rather than leaving families to navigate conflicting agencies.

“It’s unacceptable that a 20-year-old who has survived so much now lies at home for months while different parts of the system argue over who is responsible,” he said.

Oslo’s health councilor, Andreas Saliba Korkunc (Conservative Party), acknowledged systemic failures in a statement to Dagbladet, writing that “vulnerable patients should not be passed between agencies.” While he could not address individual cases, he confirmed that long-term patients are entitled to a coordinator for integrated care and that the city is working to improve collaboration between municipal services and hospitals.

“For too many who need the city most, the current system does not work well enough,” Korkunc said. “My task is to make changes at the systemic level.”