From Tuesday 1 June, all tourists arriving in Finland must undergo a mandatory health check at any border crossing point in Lapland.
Pello, on the Swedish border, has brought the caravan the border for first use to health care staff who perform coronavirus tests on arrivals. A transport container equipped for health checks must be moved from the area of the local health center to the border crossing point later in the day. The facility serves both tourists and locals looking for tests.
The Lapland Regional State Administrative Agency ordered mandatory health inspections, as only a third of those who arrived have taken coronavirus tests voluntarily.
This new requirement applies to Lapland’s smaller border crossing points and airports. Health checks have been mandatory at Tornio border crossings for longer.
It remains to be seen how many tests will be performed, as mandatory testing is likely to reduce cross-border traffic.
However, in order to deal with the increased workload, preparations have been made to hire more testers. The Lapland Hospital District has also issued a request for assistance from the Defense Forces, hoping that medical personnel would be available for the tests.
Staff shortage in Ylitornio
The situation is most difficult in Ylitornio, which has the second highest traffic on the Swedish border after Tornio. Chief Medical Officer Kari Askonen said there is a desperate shortage of testers.
"Staffing continues on an ongoing basis, but no one has applied. There is also a serious shortage of summer vacation options, which means we are right between a rock and a hard place," this is how Askonen described the situation to Yle.
The relocation of a local testing site from a health center to the border was not even considered due to labor shortages.
In their own statements to the regional authorities, the municipalities of Ylitornio and Pello did not consider mandatory health tests necessary, but preferred to test onward consignments on a voluntary basis. Askonen said that there have been so few infections in Ylitornio from the Swedish side of the border that he sees no reason for mandatory testing.
Now that the measure is in force, Askonen said he could only hope that people would stay on their side of the border. Sweden’s decision last week to lift its own controls on the Lapland border could increase the number of daily crossings by hundreds in Ylitornio.
Police help if needed
In Kolari, the testing site is still at the local health center.
"We’ll see where this is going and make changes accordingly. So far, we are in monitoring mode," said Ulla Ylläsjärvi, Chief of Kolari.
Border guards provide the health center with information about people crossing the border, and if they do not show up at the health center for a test, Ylläsjärvi can ask the police for official help and, if necessary, take him in forcibly.
On the other hand, the Lapland police have already stated that they are not always able to respond to requests for official assistance very quickly.
The force is not considered necessary in Kolari, although it must now be addressed by local authorities at least until the end of June.
"Most of us visiting Sweden visit the ICA supermarket, which is a hundred meters from the border, where there is not even a village. I think the voluntary arrangement would still have worked," Ylläsjärvi added.
Army doctors could help
Further north, the municipality of Enontekiö expects an increase in holiday trips to Norway now that it has opened up to travel from low-prevalence areas.
"If Finns start traveling a lot to the Norwegian side of the border, it will probably increase the need to test," points out the chief physician of Enontekiö Miia Palo.
The Lapland Hospital District is responsible for testing arrangements in Enontekiö and Muonio, as well as other primary health care.
More staff have been hired at Enontekiö, and even more testers are being sought. Personnel working on tests at the border in the field were recruited from the municipality’s own personnel.
The Lapland Hospital District has submitted an official request for assistance to the Defense Forces on behalf of the municipalities so that military doctors can use the help in the testing. I hope that several dozen will be made available.
The request was submitted to the Defense Forces at the end of last week, but as of the beginning of Tuesday, no response had yet been received.
Source: The Nordic Page