Innovations to promote health
The Kuopio region offers companies in the health sector a unique business ecosystem that stimulates innovation and supports research and development. The ecosystem offers experts and skilled professionals opportunities to bolster business growth and development.
With its cutting-edge research and expertise, Kuopio is one of Finland’s most significant hubs of health expertise on a global scale. Kuopio is home to top-quality international research in cardiovascular diseases, metabolic and neurological diseases (particularly neurodegenerative diseases and epilepsy) and musculoskeletal disorders. The regional health data (KUH data lake) and its further processing through sensors, robotics and IoT enable the versatile application of health data in the development of the ecosystem.
The University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio coordinates Neurocenter Finland, a Finnish cooperation network for research and development in the neurosciences. It brings together a broad group of experts in the neurosciences and supports the development of innovative solutions to some of the most urgent questions in brain health. Kuopio is also home to Kuopio Brain & Mind, a regional network under Neurocenter Finland. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has also launched new research activities in the field of digital health as part of the growing wellbeing and health technology ecosystem in Kuopio. The aims are to carry out cutting-edge research based on the use of health data in particular, to generate new digital health innovations and to establish global health and medical technology business activities in Finland and the Kuopio region.
Kuopio is also home to a number of leading businesses in the health sector, such as GE Healthcare, Charles River and FinVector.
At the heart of the health sector in Kuopio is the open innovation ecosystem KuopioHealth, a growing international community that brings together the University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio University Hospital, Savonia University of Applied Sciences, the City of Kuopio, VTT and dozens of business partners. KuopioHealth promotes research, development and innovations that stem from the needs of customers and serves as a platform for new products and services.
The health science cluster is divided into three main research and development areas:
Pharma
Med-Tech
Clinical Research
”The city of Kuopio has been always supportive of new and existing companies and has enabled key elements for business growth, ranging from soft landing services to investor identification and real estate support. Throughout the lifetime of our company, from its foundation as a small private company to current established global service provider for pharmaceutical industry, City of Kuopio has been with us all time.”