Representatives of prominent Swedish healthcare providers recently traveled to Nashville for an inside look at the healthcare industry in the United States. 

 

Last year's healthcare trade mission from Nashville to Sweden and Germany, sponsored by the Nashville Health Care Council, forged a relationship between Swedish healthcare executives and many of the Nashville delegates.

 

Participating Swedish companies and organizations included ACG Nyström, CapMan Group, Life Equity Group, Praktikertjanst, Swecare Foundation, the School of Health Sciences in Jönköping, the Swedish Association of the Pharmaceutical Industry, the Swedish Trade Council and Uppsala Care.

 

The delegation attended the Nashville Health Care Council's Forum: Health & Well-Being: Keys to Health Care Transformation, co-sponsored with the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Center for Health Transformation, where they heard from high level speakers including Governor Phil Bredesen, Mayor Karl Dean and Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.

 

Also on the visitors' agenda were programs detailing specific information important for Swedish companies interested in entering the American market, discussions dealing with culturally sensitive healthcare issues, and information on managing healthcare systems.

 

The Swedish executives' packed schedule included a briefing on the United States healthcare system by Larry Van Horn, associate professor of Health Care Management and faculty director of Health Care Programs at Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management, plus a tour of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center facilities.

 

During their three-day Nashville agenda, the delegation met with Nashville healthcare leaders from Emdeon, AmSurg, Healthways, BioMimetic Therapeutics, Brookdale Senior Living, and the Sarah Cannon Research Institute.

 

Lars Gatenbeck, chairman of Swecare Foundation, commented, "The Swedish healthcare system is considered to be one of the most advanced in the world, and Sweden is ranked as one of the world's leading nations in healthcare technology and facilities. Largely, this is due to the uniquely Swedish approach of integrating research, investment and industry in healthcare. This, in turn, is an expression of the nation's innovative character and technological progress … something that the Swecare Foundation works to display internationally."