Bærum municipality has long worked well with the implementation of health technology solutions for its residents. Now they increase speed and become a member of Norway Health Tech. The aim is to get even closer to industry and academia.

Mastery in your own home

– Going forward, it will be important to facilitate new ways of working and organizing the health service. As the Health Personnel Commission has pointed out, we cannot continue to run the health services as now, so much of our focus is on helping people to cope with life in their own homes in new and better ways, says Liv Blom-Stokstad, director of aging and coping in Bærum municipality.

Hilde Schjander-Flugon is head of health informatics. She works as a digital project manager and works with the implementation of health technology in the municipality:

– We have quite a lot of technology in use, and a good device for disseminating it in the population. We have good routines and high ambitions for welfare technology, says Hilde, who adds that the municipality has established a viewing center for health technology that is open four days a week, where residents can familiarize themselves with various solutions, says Schjander-Flugon.

International network

Trond Myrland is a special advisor for research and innovation in Bærum municipality, and works in particular with international collaborative projects. He looks forward to getting to know the health industry better and connecting the municipality even more closely to the EU programs that Norway Health Tech administers.

– We are keen to utilize synergies between the municipality, academia and the industry. There is enormous potential here, says Myrland.

Lena Nymo Helli is general manager of Norway Health Tech, and is happy to have Bærum municipality join the cluster:

– In order to create a sustainable health service, it is absolutely crucial that the municipalities adopt Norwegian health technology solutions to automate where possible, interact, prevent disease and increase the quality of treatment. Health technology is important for patients and users, and not least for the industry, which needs a well-functioning domestic market to be able to scale its solutions out into the world. Bærum is already working well with health technology. With its membership in Norway Health Tech, the municipality will gain even more knowledge and access to a large national and international network, says Lena