the Government will make language requirements which all foreign doctors must live up to in order to get work at a Danish hospital.
It says health minister Magnus Heunicke (S) to DR.
- It is completely unsustainable, that we have situations where patients come in and meet the doctors, who speak a broken English that they don't actually understand a word of what is said, says the minister, to DR.
Nurses, doctors and other health professionals from EU countries can work in Denmark without any requirements for their language skills. They are coming from countries outside the EU, they must first pass a test, but it has been accused of only to show, if they can read and write English - not whether they can carry on a conversation.
- It is so vital a part of the treatment of our patients, that one can communicate with his doctor, and we can never compromise with, says Magnus Heunicke and continues:
- As a patient, you are at the mercy of no matter what, if the doctor does not speak Danish, so it can be understood.
How to ensure that doctors, nurses and other staff at the hospitals can speak plain English, is minister of health, Magnus Heunicke not sure yet.
- I will invite the Danish Regions to a meeting to discuss how we can make a national language requirement, which makes sense for our patients and makes sense in our hospitals, he says to DR.
- I think it is incredibly relevant that it is not only about reading and writing but also in oral communication.
the Minister calls at the same time real, that the requirements should be flexible and depend on what tasks the staff have.
- Some have very patientkontakt, the other sitting behind and looking at skanningsbilleder, and some operate. So there are different requirements that must assert itself, explains Magnus Heunicke.
In 2017 according to the DR more than 2000 doctors with a foreign background employed here in the country.
