Planned organizational changes related to the provision of specialised services in Denmark

In late August 2025, the meeting of the Board of Danish Regions was held. Among the themes for discussion was the development of the new model for Specialty planning by the Danish Health Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen).

Specialty planning refers to the management of specialized hospital functions (services). The Danish Health Authority defines which services should be performed at the regional and highly specialized levels of care, and approves hospitals for them. These requirements and approvals are set in the documents called Specialty Guidance. There are currently 37 Specialty Guidance in different clinical areas (e.g., neurosurgery, cardiology) with around 1000 functions (services) regulated. These cover rare and/or resource-intensive services that should only be concentrated in a few locations to ensure sufficient expertise, routine, experience, patient volume, and the necessary facilities to deliver high-quality care.

The Danish Health Authority is now developing a new model for Specialty planning, which will serve as the future framework for regulating specialized hospital services. The change is driven by both the successes and challenges of the current model: while specialization has improved quality for patients with rare conditions, it has also diverted resources from more common conditions treated at the basic hospital level.

The new model aims to reduce regulations to only those functions where national oversight is strictly necessary, giving regions more freedom in organizing other services. The number of regulated specialized services will decrease, particularly at the regional level of care, which will likely be concentrated in fewer locations. The model also introduces elements of deregulation, allowing some functions to be shifted to the basic level of care or potentially to private providers.

The revision of the Specialty planning under this new model will be a major task requiring significant resources from the regions. Before the revision can begin, the legal basis must be in place. A legislative amendment is expected to take effect no earlier than mid-2026. The roll-out of new Specialty Guidance will then happen gradually, with regions able to adjust functions as they are deregulated.

Another theme discussed by the Board of Danish Regions was the progress of the Danish Healthcare Quality Institute (DHQI) in carrying out its tasks, including its work on the systematic development of clinical guidelines. The DHQI was launched in January 2025, merging and replacing the Health Technology Council (Behandlingsrådet) and the Regions' Clinical Quality Development Program (RKKP). Moreover, in July 2025, the Center for Clinical Guidelines (CfKR) became part of the DHQI. Currently, the DHQI is working on the development of eight clinical guidelines. 

The full details in Danish can be found here.

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