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Waiting for what?

Digitization Welfare technology

During my almost six months at IT&Telekomföretagen, I have come to realize more and more that welfare technology is an area that many talk about in Sweden - but where few act. The reasons for this can be many.

For example:

  • that the health and social care sector is not ready to implement technological solutions because they are not prepared to fully or partially change existing work processes to the extent required. Perhaps because, as Lasse Åberg puts it, we're not technophobic, just technologically averse. We are interested, we see opportunities, but we prefer to let others try first.
  • the habit of running short-term projects. Projects that are also preferably funded by Vinnova, the EU or other organizations, and where we as project owners do not have to take the full financial risk. And where the step to take the completed project further fully and involve an entire business based on what we have learned is too big. Easier to wait and see.
  • that the technical solutions are rarely based on standards that can provide platforms to work holistically, long-term and cost-effectively. Instead, the buyer becomes dependent on suppliers and experiences a lock-in effect when they cannot easily link and combine the solutions they want.
  • that the Swedish authorities see different, or no, opportunities in the area of welfare technology. On the one hand, the government expresses a desire to drive the digitization of Sweden, through media announcements and measures such as Digitalt Först. On the other hand, each ministry is allowed to pursue the digitization issue in its own way, without overall control and cohesion from a designated responsible and cohesive minister.

The question that remains is how long we can let welfare technology and digitization be a solitary unprioritized issue on the part of our leaders? The fact that the government in Digitalt Först is working with, for example, SKL to find ways to digitize the public sector is a step along the way, but still only a step. We continue to argue that what would really make a difference would be to establish a Welfare Technology Forum, based on the successful model of the Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation's Broadband Forum, which is responsible at national level for issues relating to e-health and welfare technology. Only through comprehensive governance and collaboration with all stakeholders involved, which not least includes the companies that develop welfare technology, will we really be able to move from words to action.

It is high time to stop waiting and waiting, if we are to defend our position as a digital leader and - most importantly - secure our own future prosperity.

If you want to follow our work or get involved in these issues, you can do so here:

Arena Välfärdsteknologi : Arena Välfärdsteknologi is a forum for exchange between decision-makers and strategists in ICT services for health and social care, and representatives of some of our member companies. In 2016, the work of the arena will be concentrated on seminar gatherings for invited key people in decision-making roles, at both political and official level, this is carried out together with SKL (Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions) and will include both knowledge transfer, inspiration and practical work for the participants.

The Council for Welfare Technology : The Council is aimed solely at representatives of our member companies and will work in parallel with, and as a sounding board for, Arena Welfare Technology and primarily offer the participants an exchange of experience and knowledge and the opportunity to ensure that our work with advocacy and opinion formation on the issues is well anchored and fact-based. The Council invites interested parties to a first start-up meeting on March 8.