By Mark B. Odom
Copyright yle
This week, the All Points North podcast examines the trials and tribulations that foreigners in Finland can face when seeking out mental health care.
A call-out to our audience for input earlier this week drew dozens of comments from people who shared their mental health care experiences in the country.
Many told us about long waiting lists to get access to service. One anonymous commenter noted that “trying to integrate in Finland can in of itself be a traumatic experience”.
Some said they had trouble figuring out how to get help, while others suggested their mental health caregivers weren’t really listening to their issues.
Listen to the episode via this embedded player, on Yle Areena, via Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
In 2021, research at the University of Turku found that Finland’s immigrants were two-and-a-half times more likely to develop mental health disorders than the general population. But immigrants were found to use mental health services less than their Finnish-born counterparts.
APN talked to clinical psychology therapists Annabel Battersby and Dr Hatty Francis-Ehnholm. They run a private capital area-based practice called Compass Psychology. The firm offers therapy sessions in a dozen different languages, including English.
Battersby and Francis-Enholm have observed some common themes during therapy sessions with immigrants.
“I would say one of the common themes is this experience of being a migrant and losing your competence as a grown adult. There’s a concept called ‘mastery of the environment’. So you know, feeling competent is really important for your wellbeing, and I think many, many adults lose that the moment they set foot, you know, on Finnish soil,” Battersby explained.
Battersby and Ehnholm also helped found a voluntary association called Psychological Practitioners Finland (PPF). It’s a group for trained psychologists from abroad, and has around 70 members. Among other things, the association helps practitioners in networking, professional development, and regulatory compliance.
A multi-year joint effort of their association and the University of Jyväskylä has resulted in the approval of an English-language psychotherapy training course for mental health professionals that will begin in 2026 and last for three to four years. Student recruitment efforts will begin in early 2026.
This means that the programme’s graduates will be registered as psychotherapists, enabling them to serve native English-speakers and clients speaking other languages using subsidies from the social benefits agency Kela.
Join the conversation!
Mark B. Odom produced and presented this episode of All Points North and the assitant producer was Zena Iovino. The sound engineer was Pasi Ilkka.
If you have any questions or want to share your thoughts, contact us via WhatsApp at +358 44 421 0909 or at yle.news@yle.fi and allpointsnorth@yle.fi.
this link here
