For people living in rural areas, access to basic healthcare can be a major challenge. On 20 November, a kick-off conference was held for a new Nordic project that aims to measure how accessibility to different forms of health care in sparsely populated regions may improve with digital solutions and how such solutions may contribute to regional development.
Nordregio will participate in a three-year project initiated as part of the Swedish presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers 2018. Nordregio will contribute with studies on the effects that distance spanning technologies have on accessibility and regional growth as well as assist with support and ongoing evaluation.
A kick-off conference was held in Storuman in Northern Sweden on 20-21 November. The kick-off included a visit to the Centre of Rural Medicine in Storuman, with a close look at two of the projects run there.
One project deals with virtual community care rooms located in smaller rural towns. Here citizens can have consultations and basic health checks using telecommunication. Another project focuses on the development of a drone which could deliver medicine over long distances. Both projects are concerned with creating better and more accessible care and treatment for people living in remote, rural areas.
The project involves a wide range of actors, including Nordregio’s sister organisations Nordic Welfare Center and Nordic Innovation
