The Public Health Agency of Sweden ( sv, Folkhälsomyndigheten, abbreviated ''Fohm'') is a

Swedish government agency The government agencies in Sweden are state-controlled organizations that act independently to carry out the policies of the Government of Sweden. The ministries are relatively small and merely policy-making organizations, allowed to monitor the ...

with national responsibility for

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

. It falls under the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs and works to promote public health and to prevent illness and injuries through education. It monitors the health of the population,

infectious disease An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable di ...

control measures, and public health interventions, and assists the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

in its decision-making process by providing facts and knowledge. The agency is tasked with minimizing negative

environmental impact Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...

on human health, and participates in the work of the EU and international public health organisations, such as the

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...

and

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 ...

History

The agency was established in 2014 by a merger of the Swedish National Institute of Public Health () and the Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control (). It took on most of the responsibilities for environmental health and for environment and public health reports previously assigned to the National Board of Health and Welfare ().

Organisation

The agency has about 450 employees and is based in

Solna Solna Municipality ( sv, Solna kommun or , ) is a municipality in Stockholm County in Sweden, located just north of Stockholm City Centre. Its seat is located in the town of Solna, which is a part of the Stockholm urban area. Solna is one of the ...

. It is led by Director-General Johan Carlson, and organized into five departments: Epidemiology and Evaluation, Knowledge support, Microbiology, Communications and Administration.

High-containment laboratory

The Public Health Agency of Sweden runs the only biosafety level 4 laboratory in the

Nordic region The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Swe ...

— one of only six in Europe. The laboratory is located at the headquarters in

, and has been in operation since 2001. It is built of wholly encased steel, totally isolated from the rest of the premises. The entire building is kept at negative air pressure, to prevent any contagion spreading outdoors, and laboratory access is limited to approximately 20 employees, pre-screened by the

Swedish Security Service The Swedish Security Service ( sv, Säkerhetspolisen , abbreviated SÄPO ; until 1989 ''Rikspolisstyrelsens säkerhetsavdelning'', abbreviated RPS/Säk) is a Swedish government agency organised under the Ministry of Justice. It operates as a ...

. Patients with highly infectious diseases are usually treated at high-containment medical facilities in Linköping University Hospital or at Karolinska University Hospital.

References

External links

Public Health Agency of Sweden - Official site
(English) {{authority control Government agencies of Sweden Medical and health organizations based in Sweden Public health organizations 2014 establishments in Sweden National public health agencies

History

Organisation

High-containment laboratory

See also

References

External links