As the Jargon 2017 winner, the FCG forum chose a government proposal on legislation dealing with freedom of choice in social and health services. Forum members were particularly impressed by the language that deals with the impact of the law, which had previously been criticized by MP Maarit Feldt-Ranta:
“Estimated as a whole, the proposed model of production, considering the individual’s opportunities for performance and for strengthening of user status, along with the optional strengthening of basic services, as well as on the basis of impact assessment, is justified from the perspective of probable likelihood of strengthening.”
In addition to the multiple uses of “strengthen,” the winner relentlessly deployed social and health care neologisms like capitation compensation and self-monitoring programs. Having a social service dictionary does not justify erecting such barriers to understanding. Nor do plodding circular definitions such as “service need assessment means the service need assessment defined in the Social Service Act and in the Elderly Services Law.”
Ulla Tiililä has taken a wider focus on the important role of language in the social and health care sector. Proposed reforms will require staff to produce numerous new documents. These will in turn demand know-how and additional effort that the lawmakers seem not to understand at all. Tiililä writes: “When documents are the core content of the reform, we must also ask whether there are enough communication skills to produce them. If there is no competence, the texts will hardly satisfy the requirements of meaningful, clear and understandable communications.”
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The Word of the Week is going on holiday for a few relaxing months of dissertation writing and will return in August. A beautiful summer to all language lovers!