Helsinki is the focal point of transforming healthcare
Radical Health Festival is a new, international digital health conference, taking place at the Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre on 12-14 June 2023. The goal of the event is to accelerate healthcare transformation. Main themes are artificial intelligence, mental health, active ageing, cybersecurity, innovation, and the digitalisation of the health sector.
Healthcare systems around the world are facing severe challenges. These global challenges include ageing populations, shortages of healthcare professionals, lack of focus on prevention, probability of new pandemics, and adoption of innovations.
Radical Health Festival Helsinki, organised now for the first time, tackles these issues, and stimulates healthcare to change by utilising collaboration, data, artificial intelligence, and innovations. The conference brings together policymakers, healthcare professionals, innovators, service providers, pharma leaders, investors, patients, and health enthusiasts as widely as possible. In total, approximately 1,000 participants from around the world are expected.
”Helsinki is a forerunner in developing and utilising digital health services and health technology. Helsinki has excellent data, expertise and the ecosystem for research, development, testing and applying high-tech solutions for healthcare. Health tech and digital services have a central role in promoting citizens’ wellbeing and health. In addition, health RDI and international collaboration are important growth areas for Helsinki and companies,” says Heidi Humala, Head of Unit, Business Environment at Business Helsinki, City of Helsinki.
Helsinki develops future welfare services with partners
Helsinki has made sustained efforts to develop future welfare services with start-ups and business partners, including piloting new digital services for the social and health care sector. Helsinki’s goal is to provide a city-wide test platform for testing, developing, piloting and scaling innovations. Together with RDI networks, sustainable investors and experts, the city can achieve solutions to global challenges. Events as Radical Health Festival have an important role in this work.
”As the main partner of this new international congress, Helsinki can contribute to a future health event with best experts, companies, investors and other players meeting and creating radical ideas and collaboration,” Humala says.
In the Helsinki Metropolitan, health innovation is promoted and foreign investments attracted by Health Capital Helsinki cluster, built on the strong science campuses in the Helsinki region. Health Capital Helsinki brings together local organisations in health and life sciences, as well as in health tech and social and health care. Through the cluster, HUS Helsinki University Hospital, Cities of Helsinki and Espoo, University of Helsinki, Aalto University, and Metropolia and Haaga-Helia Universities of Applied Sciences aim to achieve considerable growth in health-sector expertise and related business.
Health Capital Helsinki has actively contributed to organising Radical Health Festival and has a stand at the event exhibition area. At the stand, international event delegates can discuss and learn more for example about Helsinki region’s promising startups and research projects and testing and development environments.
Over 150 speakers share their expertise in inspiring keynotes, panel discussions and workshops. In addition, the three-day-programme includes an investor forum, startup pitching competition and networking. Juha Jolkkonen, Executive director of the social services, health care and rescue services division of the City of Helsinki, is speaking on Tuesday, 13 June at 11:00, in a session focusing on the challenges and opportunities of integrating health and social services for better outcomes.
The City of Helsinki is the main partner of Radical Health Festival. The partnership strengthens Helsinki’s position as a city promoting health innovation and as a significant health RDI hub.
