The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL, fi, Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin laitos, sv, Institutet för hälsa och välfärd; until 2019, National Institute for Health and Welfare) is a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

research and development institute operating under the

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health ( fi, Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö , sv, Social- och hälsovårdsministeriet) is a Finnish government ministry tasked with the planning and implementation of policies regarding the social affairs and ...

. THL was formed on 1 January 2009, with the merger of the

National Public Health Institute of Finland The National Public Health Institute of Finland (KTL, fi, Kansanterveyslaitos, sv, Folkhälsoinstitutet) was a research and expert institute under the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health charged with the task of protecting and promoting health ...

(KTL) and the .Act on the National Institute for Health and Welfare 668/2008
/ref> It is the biggest expert organisation under the ministry and its most important source of consultation regarding scientific knowledge.THL home page
/ref>

Scope of THL

THL's scope of activity includes both public health and social welfare. The institute aims at identifying synergy opportunities not only in the collaboration between social welfare and health care, but also in applying research and the knowledge generated with this research. THL's field of activity includes: * promoting the welfare and health of the population * preventing diseases and social problems * developing social and health care activities and services THL's main office is located in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. The institute also has satellite offices in

Kuopio Kuopio (, ) is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia. It has a population of , which makes it the most populous municipality in Finland. Along with Joensuu, Kuopio is one of the major urban, economic, and cult ...

Oulu Oulu ( , ; sv, Uleåborg ) is a city, municipality and a seaside resort of about 210,000 inhabitants in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in northern Finland and the fifth most populous in the country after: ...

Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...

, and

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

. THL has a total staff of about 935 person-years (2018). THL's annual budget is about 100 million euros, of which about one third comes through funding sources other than the State budget. In addition, the following State institutions are subordinate to THL: state mental hospitals (in Kuopio and Vaasa), and state residential schools.

Organisation

Doctor is the director general of THL. The deputy director general is Pekka Rissanen. The directors of the department are Tuire Santamäki-Vuori (Welfare), Terhi Kilpi (Public Health Solutions), Mika Salminen (Health Security), Anu Muuri (Health and Social Care Systems), and Anneli Pouta (Government Services).

Functions

THL functions as a governmental research and development institute which has official functions based in law. Research and development are usually intertwined. Own research generates new knowledge, but also makes it easier to absorb innovations from international science networks, and the institute then applies it for new development. On the other hand, it monitors the welfare and health of the population, as well as factors causing problems, and develops and promotes measures to improve the situation. This work often leads to new research demands. Thus the aim is high-quality research maintaining close contacts to international research networks, but keeping in mind the practical applications. THL comprises five departments. Most of the expenses are covered by the Government through state budget, but about a third of activities are paid from other sources, mainly competed research funding. Important sources are the Academy of Finland, Tekes – the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, Framework Programs of the European Union, National Institutes of Health (USA), and ministries through their own budgets. Total budget for 2010 was about €94 million, 68% from the State budget, 27% from outside funding sources, and 5% from chargeable services.THL
/ref> The predecessors of THL have been responsible for vaccinations in Finland for almost a century (see

). THL is active in research on vaccines, and also gives recommendations to the ministry to acquire vaccines for the public vaccination programs, monitors adverse events of vaccines, maintains certain statistics and so on. THL also does contract work for pharmaceutical and food industries. A partial source of income is clinical vaccine trials, including funds from the vaccine manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline. The legality of THL's close ties with vaccine manufactures was questioned by some parents and NGOs after unexpected side effects of H1N1 "swine flu" vaccines in 2009 and 2010. The case was investigated by the Justice Chancellor of Finland, and no wrongdoings were found. Moreover, the Government and funding agencies have encouraged increased collaboration with companies.

International relations

THL is international, and engages in extensive international co-operation. There is expert collaboration and national participation e.g. in the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

and UN authorities (

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

(DG SANCO, ECDC), and many international associations (e.g.

IANPHI The International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI) is an international umbrella organization of national public health institutes (NPHIs), public health government agencies working to improve national disease prevention and ...

). The researchers of the institute are active in many scientific organisations, there are global activities in health and welfare, European and Nordic collaboration, and co-operation with neighbouring areas.

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:National Institute For Health And Welfare (THL), Finland International research institutes Government agencies of Finland Medical research institutes in Finland National public health agencies Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare