The Greenlandic health system is under pressure and has gaps - but the criticism that US President Donald Trump has indirectly directed at it is misleading.
This is the assessment of Kjeld Møller Pedersen, who is a professor emeritus in economics and has continuously reviewed the status of the Greenlandic health system in various roles.
- I simply think it is completely and utterly misleading, says Kjeld Møller Pedersen, referring to Trump's statement.
On Sunday night, Danish time, Trump said on Truth Social that an American hospital ship is on its way to Greenland to "take care of the many people who are sick and who are not receiving the necessary treatment there".
Kjeld Møller Pedersen was deputy chairman of the Greenland Health Commission, which in May 2024 published a report on the health service in Greenland, which concluded that it was under pressure.
Minister of Defense denies knowledge of hospital ship
A little over a year later, the Greenland Health Council, of which he is chairman, published an annual report, which concluded that the health service is still under pressure.
But he emphasizes that overall it is about permanent staff.
- Where the pressure is greatest is in reality that they (Greenland, ed.) have a persistent staff shortage. And when you look at the staffing, people are up there for a relatively short time. There are far too few who settle down permanently, he says.
That is precisely what a potential hospital ship, for example, will not solve.
Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen (V) told P1 Morgen on Sunday morning that Denmark has not been informed that a hospital ship is on its way to Greenland.
He also emphasizes that the Greenlandic population receives the health care they need.
- If special treatment is needed, they will receive it in Denmark, he says.
Limits to specialization
Greenland took responsibility for the health sector back home more than 30 years ago.
The northernmost island in the Kingdom has a collaboration with Denmark in the health sector. This means, among other things, that if Greenlandic patients need specialized treatment, they can receive it in Denmark.
In addition, Danish specialists also travel to Greenland, for example a few days a month, says Kjeld Møller Pedersen.
There is a limit to how specialized the healthcare system in Greenland can be.
- With a population of around 57,000, there are simply limits to how specialized you can be, he says.
In the annual report for 2025, the council also concludes that, for example, in the area of kidney transplants, there are not enough patients in Greenland, unlike in Denmark.
In Denmark, around 250 transplants are performed per year, while statistically there will be around two per year in Greenland.
- It would be deeply irresponsible, because the probability of complications arising when doctors have to perform one or two kidney transplants a year is far too high, says Kjeld Møller Pedersen.
Overall, the Health Council of Greenland concluded in its latest annual report that the problems in the healthcare system are rooted in a lack of permanent staff.
- Many opportunities for improvement in the healthcare system depend on the recruitment and retention of employees, but unfortunately there are no quick fixes, it said.
/ritzau/
