Finland is leading the way in combining health data and technology to deliver the outcomes that matter most to patients and transform care.

More than 5 million Finns are poised to see significant improvements in their health and well-being as the country collects vital data points that will allow doctors, payers, policymakers, the pharma industry, treatment centers and other key stakeholders to focus on the outcomes that matter most to patients and their families.

Finland is at the vanguard when it comes to the creation and use of rich databases in health. Its Ministries of Economic Affairs and Employment, Education and Culture and Social Affairs and Health are together spearheading a national initiative that will use data to drive innovation and research in a number of areas, including disease prevention and the development of new treatment approaches. 

Recent legislation changes are also making it easier for key stakeholders to access data from Finnish citizens while ensuring their data privacy is protected. The result: more comprehensive and detailed pictures about the treatments Finns are receiving during their healthcare journeys and more insights into how successful these interventions really are.

This forward-looking approach means Finland is an extremely exciting place to be right now – especially if, like me, your goal is to work with others in the healthcare system and to drive the transition to a healthcare system that not only understands what is most important to its citizens, but is also able to deliver the care that meets their wishes.

Roche Finland and the University Hospital of Tampere are currently working together to leverage data so that lung-cancer patients receive the treatment they need in order to reach clearly defined treatment goals – goals that have been set by both the patient and the clinician.

Our partnership is allowing us to explore what we can already do today to embrace tangible outcomes that go far beyond the traditional clinical benefits on which we have all focused in the past. It is also enabling us to identify the gaps that we still need to overcome in order to fully move to a system that is based on Value-Based Healthcare.

This is why we are looking forward to the annual Slush event. Organizers expect 25,000 “change makers” from startups as well as the world’s largest companies (from every industry), to gather in Helsinki, one of the world’s most tech savvy cities, to work on smart strategies that will shake-up the status quo in business.

Roche is particularly keen to engage with new partners at this unique event so that we can learn from others, who have brand new skill sets and fresh perspectives. We also see this as a great opportunity to share our expertise, in particular how we are using data to develop extremely targeted medicines, with new audiences.

Roche Pharma CEO, Bill Anderson, who is running a workshop at Slush , will be looking to identify and then co-create the solutions needed to take healthcare to the next level and to make the next era of personalized healthcare a reality.

It is truly fitting that Finland is hosting one of the most innovative events in the business calendar. This is a country that is already harnessing data, technology and the most nimble minds to keep its citizens healthy. There are many lessons to be learned from the Finnish approach, but we are not there yet. I am excited to see what the Finns will learn from Slush and I can’t wait to see the impact of this cutting-edge event in countries far beyond our own.

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