From Prenatal Diagnosis to Preterm Infants: A Cultural Guide to Understand Scandinavian Variation

The Scandinavian neighbors, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, are 3 similar countries. Still, the practice and the policy on extreme premature infants are different in each of them. Why is this so? In this article, I will try to show that the differences are not primarily a result of individual disagreement among leading doctors in the 3 countries but has a cultural explanation. I compare the policies on preterm infants with a nearby one, that of prenatal diagnosis. It seems clear that the policies and practices reflect distinct features in the mentality and values of each nation. Context matters, even in situations that at first glance appear as identical. Variation in neonatal practice and policies between countries is not necessarily bad, because the cultural context is part of the moral situation in which doctors and parents decide.