I am a candidate in Finland’s first regional elections, where a regional council is elected for the welfare region of Central Finland. The election day is January 23, 2022. Use your voice!

I want to be developing the new welfare area in Central Finland so that in the future, social and health services will be available to everyone when they are needed and in the way they meet their needs.

What is important to me:

• Good availability of mental health services. Mental health should be seen like any other health issue and help should be provided quickly and with high quality.
• Social and health services must be equally accessible. The availability of services must not be a matter of money or residence. Concentration makes sense economically, but the basic services that are needed often, must be kept close to everyone.
• Adequate and high-quality services for the elderly. Services for the elderly should be provided so that the elderly are not left to survive alone in the service and system jungle. Loneliness must also be actively combated. The number of people with memory problems is rising – it is important to ensure that there is minimum turnover of employees in the services for elderly.
• The wellbeing of Social and health care workers needs to be improved so that the employees are motivated and we have enough workforce in the sector.
• The development of ICT systems in the social and health care sector must be usercentred, with an emphasis on customer experience, efficiency and working integrations. At the same time, the service development and maintenance costs needs to be kept under control. The environmental load of the systems must also be taken into account. Amount of online services needs to be increased, but traditional physical receptions still need to be well available to those who need them.
• Public and private sectors can operate side by side, companies complementing the public services.
• These elections are also animal elections. When the rescue services are moved to the welfare areas, the animal rescue will also be moved there. When a person encounters health problems and is hospitalized or in need of social assistance, the needs of e.g., pets must also be taken care of. Later, veterinary and animal welfare will probably also be moved to the regions, and this move will have to be prepared already now. The welfare of animals has always been important to me.
  
  Who am I:
  
  I have acted in the positions of trust e.g. at the municipal, provincial, hospital district and parish levels, starting in 2015. Currently I serve in the Jyväskylä Audit Board, as a deputy city councilor and in the positions of trust in the parish, as well as a shop steward, employee representative, in the ICT company I work for.
  
  My core values ​​are responsibility, honesty, care and equality. I try act constructively and I cherish cooperation.
  
  As a doctor, I base my decision-making on the research and facts, and as an economist, I take responsibility of the economy. As an ICT professional, I am able to bring my expertise to the information system development in the social services sector.
  
  I have lived nearly all my life in Central Finland. I spend my free time especially with my Spanish water dogs Viva and Sohvi.
  
  
  Answers to some frequently discussed questions:
  
  Why should one vote?
  – Regional elections are important for everyone. Even if you are doing well right now or using only occupational health services, getting good social and health services can be important for example for your elderly parents. The need for hospital care usually affects everyone at some point and it is never known when the need for rescue services will come. These issues are decided in the regional elections.
  
  Isn’t this going to be overlapping level of government? We already have the municipalities taking care of social and health services?
  – Actually there will not be an overlap. When welfare areas start their work, the responsibility for organizing social and health services and rescue operations will be transferred away from the municipalities.
  
  These elections are about social and health services. Isn’t it worthwhile to elect only social and health care professionals to welfare councils?
  – It is good to elect social and health care professionals, but also experts from other fields, such as financial speialists, and ICT professionals for information systems development, as well as experienced trustees who understand how public decision-making works. The doctor, nurse, social worker and rescue worker bring important expertise to the decision-making of the welfare area, which must be listened to in any case. On the other hand, a professional can sometimes blur how users of services experience things.
  
  Why vote for the Greens?
  – For the Greens, mental health is one of the core themes and distinguishes the Greens from other parties. Green practices include transparency, open-mindedness and research-based decision-making. In addition, social and health services and rescue operations also have an impact on the environment, and the greens are number one in taking these topics into account.