The Future of E-health in Belgium - part II

This week we had the opportunity to hold a seminar together with the Embassy of Belgium and the Wallonia Export Investment Agency who had the pleasure of inviting Swecare member companies within Health Tech for an executive eHealth seminar and possible B2B meeting with OZ Consulting, specializing in eHealth strategies and opportunities in Belgium/Wallonia.

The aim of the seminar was to enlighten the eHealth strategies at work in Sweden and the innovations within the digitalization of healthcare services and possible partnership opportunities within the Belgian healthcare system.


The interest for these kind of seminars is quite popular among our members. Not only for networking but also for building credibility about different healthcare systems. It was nice to see Zenicor Medical Systems, WeCare AB, Predicare, Doctrin, and AsthmaTuner / Karolinska Institutet.

The Belgian side opened the seminar with Cynthia Slomian, OZ Consulting. She presented the eHealth strategies and opportunities in Belgium/Wallonia and their report project where they want to highlight Swedish disruptive companies.

This report project aims at showcasing companies and policies abroad in the realm of EHealth innovation. The report will be presented at the yearly gathering of “Digital Patient”, a network of French, Belgian and Luxemburg hospitals end October 2019. This symposium could also be an opportunity for exposure for Swedish companies.  >> Download report

Cynthia explained more about the national project “eHealth Hubs & MetaHub” coordinated by the eHealth platform. The platform is meant to make medical results from hospitals (and in the near future medical laboratories) available to any caregiver who currently is treating the patient. For detailed information see https://www.ehealth.fgov.be/fr/esante/professionnels-de-la-sante/hubs-metahub/presentation-generale.

Cynthia also spoke about the initiative of the Federal Belgian Government mHealthBELGIUM, which is the Belgian platform for mobile applications that are CE-marked as a medical device.

Before mHealth solutions are implemented, they will have to go through a validation pyramid to fast-track these applications. This evaluation model analyses whether an application is safe, secure and provides benefit to the patient, caregiver or the healthcare system. No more delays of valuable innovations accessing healthcare. Please visit www.mhealthbelgium.be for more info, FAQs and how to apply, etc.

Next speakers were Mathilde Faure, MyData-Trust who presented the importance of #GDPR for the health data in the life science sector and Shampa Bari, Regional Director at Swecare who gave a short introduction about Swecare and our mission.

After a short coffee break it was time for Malin Amnefelt, Coordinator at Vision for ehälsa 2025. She talked about their vision for #eHealth and #Digital #trends and that we need to see that there's a change in perspective. The patient is in the team and we need to look more at the needs of the patient.

Next speaker was Marcus Hjorth from Inera, a private company owned by Swedish county councils, regions and municipalities, as well as the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR). The owners have tasked the company with developing joint digital solutions that will help to streamline their operations. They have more than 40 #digital services to offer, among them the Swedish Healthcare Guide online, 1177.se. Sweden's national hub for advice, information, inspiration and e-services for health and healthcare. The general public is welcome to call 1177 for healthcare advice twenty-four hours a day, year-round, all over Sweden.

The last speaker was Björn Nordlund from AsthmaTuner. AsthmaTuner by MediTuner is a digital solution developed in close collaboration with the Swedish healthcare industry. It was created with the goal of helping patients take control of their asthma, simplifying the process and increasing efficiency for caregivers. Asthma is a chronic disease that affects around ten per cent of the population, there are major savings to be made by reducing handling time and achieving a system that provides more precise information on the patient’s lung function and symptoms. Mr. Nordlund showed us their remarking results in reducing the number of health care visits than with traditional non-digital self-management. 

Amandine Pekel, Trade and Investment Commissioner from the Embassy of Belgium wrapped up and invited all participants and members of Swecare to join them at Medica, visit their booth and their special Belgian Happy Hour. 

We say a big thank you to the Embassy of Belgium for making this an interesting event for our members!

For further information please do not hesitate in contacting the team at Stockholm-Wallonia Export Investment Agency via their email.

Should you wish to see the presentations, email Swecare.

A new initiative - Welcome Gathering for New Members

On January 21st we launched a new initiative – a networking event for newly entered Swecare members. The interest for this event was very positive and we welcomed 15 member companies this time!

The outline of the meeting was to connect members together, get to know them, their business better and invite them to get a better understanding of Swecare’s core business and how we can support them in their internationalization process.

During the gathering, the members had a chance to hear testimonials and tips from representatives of the board and members who have been with us for a while and how they use the platform Swecare offers.

Niclas Jacobson, Deputy Director, Ministry of Health and Social Affairs presented the governments work on export promotion, Per Nylund, Vice President Global Strategic Sales, Elekta and Christian Kinch, CEO, Bactiguard talked about how they utilize Swecare and official export promotion work from their company perspective.

Patrik Sundström, Head of eHealth, Swedish Association for Local Authorities and Regions (SKL) and their view on partnerships as key to drive sustainable improvement, innovation and growth and Pavan Asalapuram, CEO, EMPE Diagnostics was also invited to talk but due to unforeseen circumstances they could not make it this time. We look forward to listen to them another time!

Thereafter, we opened the floor for a round of introductions of the invited members: ADDI Medical, Advokatbyrån Gulliksson, Biomedex, Byon8 AB, Centigo AB, Docly Healthcare AB, EMPE Diagnostics AB, Fillauer Europe AB, Gnosco AB, Kontigo Care, MediRätt, Minnovation International AB, Sirona Health Solutions, Stiftelsen Choice and the Swedish Standards Institute.



It was interesting to hear about their mission and their needs in their internationalization.

Swecare has a broad network where academia, public sector (including the government), and private sector jointly address health care challenges. We strongly believe that through close collaboration in tackling common challenges from multiple angles increases our international competitiveness and strengthens Swedish health care.

As one of our members said yesterday; “Swecare is what you make of it, take advantage!” He is absolutely correct - Swecare is a useful and cost-effective tool to create export possibilities for Swedish health care. We act as a door opener and create platforms through which you can access your counterparts across the globe. We look forward to acting as a key in unlocking new business opportunities for you. It was lovely to see so many of them joined together!

Swedish-Hungarian Medtech & Digital Health Symposium builds bridges between two classic Life Science nations

It was a joyful group of delegates that met with key stakeholders in Stockholm at the welcome reception at the residence of H.E. dr. Adrien Müller Ambassador with the aim of increasing cooperation and partnerships.

The symposium was honored by the opening words of H.E. dr. Adrien Müller Ambassador and our CEO Maria Helling, after which the attendants learned about the Hungarian development in Medtech and Digital Health and the active work of Medical, Dental and Wellness tourism to Hungary by speakers Eszter Kovacs from Semmelweiss Medical University and Imre Varadi from Infoter.

After which Ylva Wide from the Swedish eHealth Agency and Karina Tellinger McNeill from the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) explained their key roles in the Swedish eHealth ecosystem and the Swedish vision on eHealth2025.

After presentations from academia, public sector and NGO´s there was presentations on the business aspects. Janos Rajki from Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency delivered interesting stats and was followed by a case example from Björn Söderberg who had been working with Tensiomed and then company pitches from 77 Elektronika, Iron Rooster Technologies, Meduscmart and Solecall and subsequent speeddating.

The day was wrapped up by a visit to H2 Health Hub for presentations by the CEO Paul Beatus and Per Lek from Stockholm Science City where they presented the development of Hagastaden, and there was some time for companies to talk to the hub-companies. All in all a productive day and a good start for building lasting partnerships.

Storbritannien storsatsar för en framtid där Life Science sektorn är högprioriterad

Det var en uppskattad summering som Björn Axelsson på UK Department for International Trade gjorde av den uppdaterade industriella strategin för life science på 75 sidor skriven av professor Sir John Bell till regeringen. Strategin är indelad i ideer, människor, infrastruktur, affärsklimat, platser och de förslag som insamlats är del av den öppna inbjudan till industrin att föreslå åtgärder som gör att den brittiska life science sektorn som omsätter £64 miljarder årligen och har över 233 000 anställda ska hålla sig konkurrenskraftigt även efter brexit.

Denna rapport som är en del av den bredare industriella strategin ska stå som grund för en så kallad Sector Deal mellan regeringen och industrin. Den som nu presenteras är en utav totalt 4 som lanseras och några av de tydligaste dragen handlar om större investeringar från staten och industrin tillsammans. Några exempel är att staten ökar sin R&D budget från det moderata 1.7 % till 2.4 % av BNP, vilket procentuellt fortfarande är långt efter länder som Israel, Japan och de nordiska länderna men i absoluta tal skulle föra landet till den grupp av 5-6 länder som investerar mest på forskning och utveckling.

Ett annat exempel är att skapa samverkansplattformar mellan privata och publika aktörer inom life science och vård såsom HARP (Health Advanced Research Programme) startas, stärka kapaciteten och effektiviteten för kliniska prövningar, £146 miljoner av staten investerat i läkemedelstillverkning (som matchas av en både en industriell strategisk fond på £253 miljoner och bolagssatsningar från bl.a NovoNordisk, GSK, AstraZeneca, MSD och Cobra). Detta kopplat med satsningar för snabbare innovationsupptag i NHS genom satsningar på medtech- och digitala innovationshubbar, samt intraprenöskap gör att finns anledning även för svenska bolag att hålla sig a jour med utvecklingen.

Trotts att stimulansåtgärderna främst är riktade mot den inhemska industrin, så menade de inbjudna talarna från Storbritannien som representerade GRS och Accelerate UK att den inhemska marknaden är så beroende av importerade produkter och tjänster att både utmaningarna och stimulansen mest påverkar den inhemska industrin. För svenska bolag är det (fortfarande) business-as-usual och det är viktigt att inte stirra sig blind på det som sker på makronivå utan att bearbeta kunderna som främst är inom NHS intensivt och ihärdigt då företagskulturen generellt är mer konkurrensorienterad, samtidigt som de fyra nationella NHS (Wales, England, Skottland och Nordirland) med övriga relevanta organisationer kan upplevas som en seg koloss om man inte hamnat rätt i organisationen. Att komma rätt i handlar både om att identifiera rätt partners på plats, men också om att ingå i ”rätt” kretsar då medlemskap i olika grupperingar och föreningar är en del av affärskulturen, eller som det något skämtsamt påpekades att lyckas i Storbritannien handlar om att nätverka i London och sälja utanför.

Candid discussions on facilitating Swedish access to - and success in - the dynamic Indian market

Sometimes the best ideas emerge from meetings without agendas, and the most exciting initiatives while you are trying to get from one place to the next. Inspiring colleagues and partners do not hurt either.

The Indo Swedish Joint Working Group on Health meeting, which was supposed to take place yesterday, was cancelled due to reasons beyond the control of its participants. Our partner, colleague, and friend from Delhi, who has been at the Swedish Embassy there for almost 22 years, came regardless and tried to maintain a part of the program drawn up for the JWG delegation.

Yasmin Roy-Zaveri's week started at a roundtable organised by the Sweden India Business Council and hosted by Swecare, during which pharma and medtech companies came face to face with a high-level delegation from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, led by Additional Joint Secretary Atul Chaturvedi - accompanied by the Indian Embassy in Stockholm, Invest India, and the Confederation of Indian Industry. During this open and frank discussion, the key question was asked as to how can India make things easier for Swedish companies to enter the market. Clearly the country is eager to make the necessary changes and indeed has already taken many steps in this direction, including the recent change in policy as regards to medical devices.

This roundtable, which was followed by a delicious dinner at India House, was a precursor to the 'Make in India' event planned in Stockholm October 12-13. The first of its kind, this two day exhibit will showcase the success and potential of the Indian market.

Tuesday morning was much more low-key, and quite fruitful, as the day began with the H2 Health Hub breakfast. Yasmin, Johan from the Swedish Ministry of Health, and Swecare sat with the founders of H2 and some of its members to brainstorm  on ideas through which we could complement each other's work and make our contributions more meaningful. Some extremely exciting project concepts came out of the three hours spent there (no one wanted to leave) - so do watch this space for updates!

The day ended with a meeting at Karolinska Institute's International Relations Unit where we discussed the progress, challenges, and potential for partnerships with India. Yasmin's trip was rounded off with meetings at the Ministry of Health and with some of the agencies who have been collaborating under the Indo-Swedish MoU on Health.

It was generally agreed that the time to act in India was now. The government, with its new Health Policy, has increased its contribution to the Health System. And while the going may be slow at times, the effort is worth it. Also, you are not alone. Swecare and Yasmin at the Embassy of Sweden in Delhi is always here to help.


With that, we at Swecare wish you a wonderful Midsummer!