title: [Small hospitals--future tasks and functions].
abstract: We review the small municipal hospitals included in our study of hospitals serving less than 50,000 persons. We identified the following problems: These hospitals are resource-intensive to a greater degree than expected, measured in terms of beds, doctors, health services and per capita costs in the area served by the hospital. Moreover, their quality is questionable, due to problems of recruitment and lack of continuity, a weak infrastructure, and insufficient patients to maintain a high level of competence, especially in taking care of patients with complicated and acute conditions. We foresee, and recommend, a new and different future for small hospitals, emphasizing closer links with primary health care and closer collaboration with the larger county hospitals. Key words are: Outpatient services, including perhaps ambulatory specialist services from the larger hospitals, elective services in fields of special competence, possibly covering a larger area, rehabilitation services, municipal psychiatric services; and finally, the traditional acute services should be changed to a first-aid service, preferably as part of emergency care in the municipality.
authors.affiliation: Helsedirektoratet Calmeyers gate 1, Oslo.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Melsom
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jonsbu
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mork
mesh_terms: D006773:Hospitals, Municipal / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D009664:Norway
vernacular_title: Småsykehus--fremtidige oppgaver og funksjoner.