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Pekka Puska appointed Director General of the National Institute for Health and Welfare

On 27 November 2008, the Government appointed Professor Pekka Puska as Director General of the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). The Institute will start operations on 1 January 2009.

Professor Puska (MD, PhD, MPolSc) has been Director General of the National Public Health Institute (KTL) since 2003. During his time at KTL, he has also held the posts of Research Professor and Department Director (1977–2001). In addition, he was Principal Investigator of the North Karelia Project between 1972 and 1997 and served as the Director for Non-communicable Disease (NCD) Prevention and Health Promotion at WHO in 2001–2003.

National Institute for Health and Welfare to be launched 1 January 2009

The new National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) is set to start operations on 1 January 2009, following the merger of the National Public Health Institute (KTL) and the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES). As a key actor both in Finland and internationally, THL will be committed to promoting the well-being and health of the population, preventing disease and social harms, and developing social and health services.

THL pursues and carries out its objectives by means of research, development activities, official tasks, steering through information as well as international co-operation. In its capacity as the statutory statistical authority for health and welfare, THL maintains and promotes the use of a strong knowledge base within the field.

With considerable expert knowledge, THL seeks to serve the broader society in addition to the scientific community, actors in the field and decision-makers in central government and municipalities. One of its key objectives is to help municipalities develop their social and health services. The knowledge generated at the Institute will be used to monitor and improve these services in terms of availability, quality, productivity, efficiency and impact.

The National Institute for Health and Welfare will be located in Helsinki and it will have regional satellite offices in Jyväskylä, Kuopio, Oulu, Tampere, Turku and Vaasa. The new Institute has a total staff of about 1300. THL is subject to the performance guidance of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.