9.9.2026 | The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) supports the development of a shared data policy during the next government term. Better use of national, harmonised data resources across sectoral boundaries would enable Finland’s next productivity leap.

Steering of information management THL’s steering of information management in the health and social services sector establishes shared rules for defining, processing and utilising data. In practice, this includes, for example, THL defining nation...

Outlook for the development of information management The development outlook for information management in health and social services describes the long‑term direction for how data and its use will evolve. The operating environment of health and ...

Information management in health and social services Information enables an effective and sustainable health and social services system. Health and social care information management refers to the ways in which data in the health and social servic...

Steering of Health and Social Care Information Management Head of Unit Niina Haake The core tasks of the unit are: To steer and develop information management in healthcare and social welfare at the national level in cooperation with stakeholders....

9.9.2026 | The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) supports the development of a shared data policy during the next government term. Better use of national, harmonised data resources across sectoral boundaries would enable Finland’s next productivity leap.

5.10.2026 | Differences in the quality and adequacy of services for older people between wellbeing services counties undermine equality in service provision. According to the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Finland needs a national quality programme for services for older people. The programme would define quality criteria, targets, and monitoring and reporting practices.

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management On this page Who is the guideline for? This guideline is intended for managers and experts who utilize RAI benchmarking data. It supports the use of RAI information in frontline management, inter-organiz...

Promoting health and well-being – Municipal management On this page Positive development in health promotion within municipal management Municipal management and central administration play a significant role in promoting the health and wellbeing ...

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management – EasyRAIder databases The EasyRAIder databases are tools for supporting the development of an organisation’s operations. The EasyRAIder databases are intended for service providers and service organiser...

Knowledge‑based management strengthens the social and health care services Effective and equitable social and health care services are built on decisions that rely on up‑to‑date and reliable information. The responsibility of the wellbeing service...

The project examines the possibilities of utilising data accumulated outside the service system in health and wellbeing promotion management.

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management – Frequently asked questions How do I access RAI benchmarking reports and other RAI benchmarking databases? RAI benchmarking reports THL's RAI benchmarking reports are available to healthcare and social ...

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management – RAI benchmarking reports RAI benchmarking reports are tools for developing the operations of care units. RAI benchmarking report is intended for service providers and organizers to support the monitori...

Updated: Mon Aug 17 15:51:24 EEST 2026 Quality report: Promotion of Health and Wellbeing in Municipal Management – TEA 2025 If you are looking for statistical figures for these statistics, go to the statistics page: Promotion of Health and Wellbei...

30.9.2026 | There are clear differences between wellbeing services counties in how many older people are offered home care, how much home care is provided and how care is delivered. Home care is increasingly targeted at those who need a lot of services. The information comes from recent statistics published by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL).

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management – RAI database for service organiser The RAI database for service organiser is a tool for service organisers to support regional-level analysis. It is intended for the Wellbeing service county to review ...

RAI benchmarking for data-driven management – RAI database for service purchaser The RAI database for service purchaser is a tool for service purchasers to analyse purchased service units. The RAI database for service purchaser is intended for the...

Courses related to the promotion of wellbeing and health – Knowledge-based management for promoting wellbeing and health Course description and learning objectives This online training course strengthens skills in knowledge-based management and th...

Information security THL’s information security policy defines the principles followed within the institute to ensure the secure use, processing, storage, and disposal of data. The organisation’s information security is managed by identifying the ...

25.8.2026 | Green time is an easy way to improve health and well-being in everyday life. It refers to any time spent in natural environments, whether in a local park, forest, beach, or other green or blue space.

9.9.2026 | Tomi Malmström has been appointed Deputy Director General, Information at THL. He joins THL from Nordic Healthcare Group (NHG), where he has served as Director responsible for AI & Data. Malmström will take up his position as Deputy Director General, Information on 1 October.

Information Steering of the Service System Head of Unit Mikko Peltola The unit strengthens information steering of the healthcare and social welfare service system by producing relevant, reliable, and comparable data as a basis for steering and de...

14.9.2026 | Government grants for food aid activities for 2027–2028 are now open for applications. Municipalities and wellbeing services counties may apply for the grant. The application period is from 14 September 2026 to 13 November 2026.

Adequate and equitable support secures informal care Informal care replaces a significant share of home care in the wellbeing services counties and delays the need for round-the-clock service housing. The costs of contractual informal care for adu...

EUDA's Finnish focal point collects and analyses information on Finland’s drug situation and disseminates drug-related information.

THL’s data repository responds to phenomenon-based information needs THL has a statutory duty to collect information on the population’s wellbeing and health, as well as on their use of social and health care services. This information is widely u...

Mediation service for criminal and civil cases – Contact information All mediation offices in Finland are listed on this page by region. More detailed contact information for the mediation offices is available on their websites. Lapland and Northe...

Wastewater analysis provides information on drug use across the country Wastewater analysis is a way to monitor drug use at the population level without conducting research on individuals. THL has monitored the drug situation in Finland using wast...

THL supports regional projects that promote the health, wellbeing and functional capacity of older people and informal carers and studies their impacts.

3.9.2026 | THL has published new quality and metadata reports on the Care Register for Primary Health Care and the Care Register for Health Care. The reports bring together key information on the content of the registers as well as the coverage and quality of the data they contain.

3.9.2026 | From 2027, BC medical certificates for people applying for a disability pension or vocational rehabilitation can be transmitted electronically from health care to earnings-related pension providers. The change speeds up case processing and makes things easier for both doctors and customers.

11.8.2026 | Starting this autumn, new upper secondary students will be given a digital health survey from student health care to fill in. There are two versions of the health survey: one for students of compulsory education age and one for adult students. The survey streamlines the transition to student health care and strengthens the ability to offer the right kind of support at the right time to general upper secondary school students and students at vocational institutions.

17.8.2026 | Wellbeing services counties have introduced over 600 new operating models to speed up access to care, streamline services and expand the opportunities for using digital services. These reforms were implemented under the Sustainable Growth Programme for Finland.

The Healthy Finland survey provides information on the health, well-being and service use of people living in Finland and on changes in them.

Research on services for older people produces information on the need for services, how they are implemented, their adequacy, quality, effectiveness, and resources.

The National health index is a set of indicators that contains information on population morbidity and work disability in municipalities, wellbeing services counties, and cooperation areas.

The syringe residue analysis study provides laboratory-verified information on the prevalence of substances used by injection and changes over time.

Monitoring of Services for Older People produces up-to-date and comparable information on the quality and implementation of services for older people to support national monitoring.

The project produced information on the health, well-being, service needs and factors affecting integration of the immigrant population.

27.5.2026 | According to a recent report, continuity of care can be improved by developing information management, harmonising documentation practices and making wider use of digital solutions and artificial intelligence.

Coordination and support for implementation definition of data content and development requirements, development of secondary use of task information from social and crisis emergency services.

16.6.2026 | The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) are deepening their cooperation. An agreement on a new type of collaboration was signed in Kuopio on 16 June.

The MoniSuomi survey aims to provide reliable and up-to-date information on the foreign-born population living in Finland.

Data-driven management is the foundation of effective well-being work Published 9.9.2026 The views expressed in the blog posts are the writers' own and do not represent the official position of the institution. Promoting the well-being and health ...

CAREFIT examines how physical activity promotes the health and functional capacity of older family caregivers and how caring responsibilities affect participation in a physical activity programme.

20.5.2026 | Healthcare chat consultations improved access to primary care but did not significantly reduce in-person visits. They did, however, reduce contacts through other services, such as phone calls, consultations, and assessments of care needs. Overall, the total number of primary care contacts increased.

11.5.2026 | The financing model for wellbeing services counties requires further development, and the work should examine, among other things, the incentives in the current model, the demographic model and the counties’ taxation rights, according to THL. The institute has published its own proposal for the further development of the financing model in the coming years.

11.6.2026 | According to the latest results from the National Health Index, rates of work disability are on the decline among the population in Uusimaa while primarily increasing elsewhere in Finland. Morbidity, however, is changing in different ways in different diagnostic categories. For example, the occurrence of coronary disease is declining in all of Finland while diabetes and sleep apnoea are on the rise nationwide. Mental health also remains a concern.

13.8.2026 | At the beginning of 2025, a new Disability Services Act entered into force. According to the wellbeing services counties, the organisation of services under the new legislation and the implementation of the Act have, in many respects, proceeded well. However, a survey conducted by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) among the wellbeing services counties shows that there are also challen...

5.5.2026 | The renewed Innokylä online service has been launched. The reform strengthens Innokylä’s role in supporting development work and promotes the findability, assessment and implementation of effective practices in social welfare and health services as well as in health and wellbeing promotion.

Information guides the future of child welfare Published 4.12.2025 The views expressed in the blog posts are the writers' own and do not represent the official position of the institution. Attendees of the National Child Welfare Days in Jyväskylä ...

Influencing social welfare information starts during legislative drafting Published 3.9.2026 The views expressed in the blog posts are the writers' own and do not represent the official position of the institution. The reform of the Social Welfare...

29.5.2026 | The number of households receiving supplementary social assistance increased in 11 wellbeing services counties and decreased in 12. The number of households receiving preventive social assistance increased in eight counties and decreased in 14.

3.9.2026 | The use of alpha-PVP remains heavily concentrated in southern and western Finland, particularly in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. The increase in its use has levelled off, but use appears to have stabilised at a relatively high level. Cocaine use has increased in almost all parts of Finland, according to the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare’s latest wastewater study. The results provide an overview of drug use both nationally and locally in 32 cities across Finland.

24.3.2026 | There will be service interruptions in the external online services of the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) on Wednesday 25 March. There will be interruptions between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.

19.5.2026 | The number of children aged 0–2 who were taken into care increased by 9% in 2025.  A total of 292 children were taken into care in 2025. The number of children under 3 receiving support in open care increased by 10%.

10.2.2026 | THL is ready to take responsibility for implementing a new national data and permit function focusing on the utilisation of health data. The report published today by Sitra proposes that a national health data space be established in Finland. This would bring together health data infrastructure, licensing and research, development, and innovation activities. This is based on the opportunities provided by artificial intelligence for the utilisation of data.

16.6.2026 | Service needs assessments in child welfare continue to be completed mainly within the statutory timeframe, and fewer and fewer social workers have too many clients. According to THL, monitoring of statutory time limits must not be discontinued, because it helps ensure that children and families receive the support they need in a timely and equitable manner throughout the country.

4.9.2026 | About six in ten clients of services for older people feel they get outdoors often enough.  Clients in service housing with 24-hour assistance feel they get outdoors often enough more commonly than clients in home care and communal housing.