Patients face longer waiting times for access to treatment in primary health care – waiting lists in specialised health care have shortened
The latest statistics on access to treatment from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) show two diverging trends. In primary health care, patients experienced longer waiting times for access to treatment in 2025. In specialised health care, however, the number of patients waiting a long time for treatment decreased significantly.
“The positive development in specialised health care is an important achievement. At the same time, the deterioration in access to treatment in primary health care, including among young people, is a particularly concerning signal,” says Sara Launio, Chief Physician at THL.
“Access to a physician in primary health care is often a prerequisite for access to specialised health care, as referrals originate in primary care. If patients cannot see a doctor in time, the entire care pathway is delayed. This may also result in delays in situations where early diagnosis is crucial for treatment outcomes,” Launio emphasises.
Young people should have access to treatment within two weeks
For the adult population, the maximum waiting time for access to treatment in primary health care was extended from 14 days to three months in 2025. Access to treatment deteriorated among adults: only 59% were able to see a doctor within 14 days during 2025.
By law, those under 23 years of age must still be given access to treatment within 14 days. This requirement was not met in 2025. In December 2025, 71% of patients under 23 were able to see a physician within 14 days. However, the situation did not deteriorate significantly during the year.
Access to care at nurse appointments was good across all age groups in 2025.
In some regions, nearly all non-urgent visits have been recorded in access-to-care monitoring, which means that visits not belonging to the monitoring—such as follow-up visits—have been incorrectly included. The issue concerns wellbeing services counties using a specific patient information system, particularly affecting data on those under 23. Nevertheless, the statistics clearly indicate that access to treatment in primary health care has deteriorated.
Significant decrease in long waits in specialised health care
At the same time, development in specialised health care was clearly positive. The proportion of patients waiting more than 180 days (over six months) decreased from 14.7% to 12.7% over the year. The total number of patients waiting decreased by nearly 8,000.
The trend was positive in most wellbeing services counties, although regional differences remain considerable.
Waiting lists also include patients for whom delays in procedures may be life-threatening. For example, among more than 3,000 patients who underwent coronary angioplasty, only 35 had waited more than three months, and none had waited over six months.
“The difficult situation during the COVID-19 years has been overcome. For such procedures, access to care was good, demonstrating that the system is capable of prioritising the most urgent cases,” Launio says.
Some regions perform all joint replacement surgeries within six months
The largest number of patients were waiting for non-urgent procedures, particularly those that maintain the quality of life and functional capacity of older people. For example, more than 10,000 patients were waiting for hip and knee replacement surgery, with an average of 24% waiting longer than six months.
South Karelia and Central Ostrobothnia were able to treat all patients awaiting joint replacement within six months.
Fewer young people waiting long for mental health services
Positive development was also seen in mental health services for young people. The number of patients under 23 who had waited more than three months for specialised mental health services decreased by 190 patients (–9 percentage points) during the year.
Functioning care pathways are key
One of the objectives of the health and social services reform has been to strengthen primary health care.
“The shortening of waiting lists in specialised health care is good news. At the same time, it is important to ensure that the entire care pathway functions smoothly: access to specialised procedures fully benefits people only when primary health care also functions effectively,” Launio emphasises.
Sources
Access to treatment in primary health care 2025
Access to services in specialised health care 2025
Further information
Sara Launio
Chief Physician
tel. +358 29 524 7567
[email protected]
Statistics on access to treatment in primary health care
Tiina Marttila
Senior Specialist
tel. +358 29 524 8533
[email protected]
Statistics on access to services in specialised health care
Pia Paasela
Development Manager
tel. +358 29 524 8405
[email protected]