Care Giving in Finland

In Finland we have over 300,000 Family Care Givers who are providing care for the disabled, long term ill or elderly relative or friend at home. About 28,000 of the carers receive Home Care Allowance from their local municipalities. The municipalities are basically responsible both for health care and provision of social services. The people have no obligation, according to law, to provide care for their disabled, long term ill or elderly relatives but actually many people are doing so. In Finland women as well as men are actively participating the labour market and usually as full time workers. Finland is also a large country, by square meters, and many adults live far away from their parents and this fact has an effect on the family care of elderly people.

In the Context of Home Care the Following Acts are Important:

- Act on Family Caregiving (1.1.2006). The Act updated and replaced existing regulations on family care support which were based on The Act on Social Welfare Care .The purpose of this Act is to promote the best interest of the cared-for person by securing adequate social and health care services as well as the continuance of care and the support for the work of family carer. Family care support refers to the whole that includes the services given to the cared-for person and the allowance, time-off and support services for the carer. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health also published a guide booklet about national recommendations and equal practices in supporting family carers. The guide is mainly for municipal authorities.

More information: Ministry of Sosial Affairs and Health

- The Act on Social Welfare Care, which requires municipalities to provide income support and arrange services. According to this Act, the municipalities have to organize for example home help services, institutional care, service housing and preventive services. The municipalities have the freedom to decide how they provide or arrange the care services. The Primary Health Care Act and The Specialized Health Care Act requires the municipalities to organize Health care Services needed by local residents.

- The Act for Services and Assistance for Disabled Persons. The aim of this Act is to improve the ability of a disabled person to live as normally as possible and to prevent and eliminate the disadvantages caused by the disability. The Act covers all the services needed to implement this purpose. The Act gives people diagnosed as seriously disabled the subjective right to necessary services. This means that the municipality has to provide these services. Moreover the Act of Special Care Services gives the framework for the services of Developmentally handicapped persons.