University of Turku and wellbeing services county of Southwest Finland deepen their collaboration
Keywords:The University of Turku and the wellbeing services county of Southwest Finland have signed a strategic partnership agreement and a supplementary cooperation agreement with the objective of deepening the multidisciplinary and long-term cooperation between the parties in order to strengthen sustainable well-being and vitality.
The agreements were signed by Rector Marjo Kaartinen and Director of wellbeing services county Tarmo Martikainen.
The agreements between the University of Turku and wellbeing services county of Southwest Finland (Varha in short in Finnish) will strengthen research, education and innovation development. They will contribute to the vitality of Southwest Finland and the overall well-being of its people.
“As a wellbeing services county with a university, the promotion of research-based knowledge in all our activities is our core value. Our aim is to have a broad, multidisciplinary collaboration with the University. In addition to the traditional social welfare sectors, we want to cooperate in areas such as industrial engineering and artificial intelligence," says Director of wellbeing services county Tarmo Martikainen.
The aim of the cooperation is to increase the region's skill and knowledge capital by building on the strengths of both organisations. Of the two new agreements, the first concerns a strategic partnership and the second specifies cooperation, for example, in the Turku University Hospital.
“The strategic goal of the University of Turku is to conduct research with impact – and the collaboration with Varha is an excellent example of this. Together, we aim to develop health and wellbeing services based on researched information and at the same time offer our students the most current and practical education," says Rector of the University of Turku Marjo Kaartinen.
Wellbeing services county engages in research and development
Varha is constantly researching and developing its methods of care and activities in its cooperation area, which includes the Wellbeing Services Counties of Satakunta and Ostrobothnia in addition to Southwest Finland. Some of the research projects have spread throughout Finland and abroad.
The cooperation agreement also supports Varha's strategic objectives.
“Cooperation with the University of Turku helps us to ensure that what we do has an impact. We can only prove it with researched information. Through research and education, we strengthen the skills of our staff and create the conditions for new care practices and innovations," says Ville Kytö, Varha's Research and Development Director.
Benefit to students, staff, patients and customers
The agreements highlight the role of education and research. The Turku University Hospital serves as a key environment for both clinical research and the training of medical students.
“The University Hospital is a unique learning and research environment. With the agreement, we are able to better integrate research, teaching and patient care. This will benefit students and staff as well as patients," says Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Pekka Hänninen.
Every year, approximately 8,000 students in different fields are trained and taught at Varha. More than 1,000 scientific articles and dozens of doctoral dissertations are published each year.
The new agreement is valid until further notice and will allow for flexibility in response to the changing operational environment. The agreement will also lay a foundation for new initiatives in a number of disciplines, such as nursing science, social sciences, and various services of the wellbeing services county.