Sammanfattning
Background. As outlined in the Norwegian Act relating to medical practitioners (of 1980), doctors practising in Norway loose their authorization automatically at age 75, but have the possibility of applying for a continued license. Such a regulation is rather unique from an international point of view. We have investigated doctors’ attitude towards this regulation.
Material and method. The article is based on two postal questionnaire surveys; one sent to 1400 practising doctors in 2006 and one sent to 900 retired doctors in 2007.
Results. 69?% (969/1400) of the practising and 92 % (829/900) of the retired doctors responded. 80 % (772/969) of the practising and 34 % (284/829) of the retired doctors agreed with the requirement to apply for an extended lisence at age 75. 25 % (97/389) of the respondents over 74 years had retained their license at the time of the investigation.
Interpretation. Most doctors under age 70 accept automatic discontinuation of authorisation at age 75, but support of the regulation decreases with increasing age.