Good morning,

The Healthcare DENMARK Ambassador network was established now 5 years ago, and a that event I had the pleasure of first meeting several of you.

As patron, I am very pleased to see the strong collaboration that has flourished since then.

Because we are facing many of the same and complex healthcare challenges – collaboration is essential. Collaboration where we share information and knowledge, offer inspiration on new solutions and innovations and showcase modern technology and its impact on systems and infrastructure.  

And here, I would like to express my gratitude to the Healthcare DENMARK Ambassadors for your commitment.

I would also like to welcome the new Ambassadors from France, Sweden, Canada and Great Britain and thank you all for taking the time and effort to come to Denmark and hear and learn about Danish healthcare solutions - and to perhaps take this knowledge and inspiration with you back home.

Since the last summit two years ago, Healthcare DENMARK has expanded to include life science. This area is now a rapidly growing one and it’s one where we have a strong and long tradition of expertise.

This expansion provides an opportunity to include new aspects into our Healthcare Denmark Ambassadors Network. Further, it is an opportunity to establish closer relations between the network and Danish Embassies abroad.

And I am pleased to see the participation of Danish Embassies here today. Your local knowledge is essential to the endeavour of solving complex challenges collectively.

As Healthcare DENMARK Ambassadors you make a difference.  And this is clear, amongst other things, by your involvement and contributions to country visits like the ones the Crown Prince and I make, together with Danish business delegations. A good example is the way in which you use your network to facilitate important roundtable discussions or seminars – basically, setting the scene for constructive dialogue and sharing, and facilitating new contacts and knowledge exchange across borders.

I look forward to our upcoming visit to France where I know that our Healthcare Ambassadors are deeply involved in ensuring the right framework for Healthcare discussions.

One of our strongholds in Denmark is our strong public-private cooperation. The Genome Center East, which has kindly offered to host us today, is an excellent example of this.

Generous donations from private foundations enable world-class innovation and more effective pathways to new treatments and medicine. These contributions support our healthcare authorities in improving our healthcare system and making it sustainable for the future.  However, they can also serve as an inspiration for other countries to explore the potential of public-private cooperation in new ways.

During this summit you have been introduced to different examples of private-public cooperation, and the summit has also included updates on progress within digitalization and Personalized Medicine.

The Danish healthcare system is characterized by a high level of digitalization and systematic use of data. Denmark has a long tradition of collecting health data in national registries and biobanks. The healthcare registries contain high-quality data on many important health issues for the entire population since the 1970s. This provides Denmark with unique possibilities for improving diagnosis and medical treatment to the benefit of patients.

In our efforts to support health research and the development of personalized medicine, close corporation between our healthcare system and private partners in the life science industry play an important role.

Most countries are facing ageing populations with more and more life-style related and cronic diseases, resulting in enormous pressure on public spending.

And here it pays to remember what Winston Churchill once said many years ago: “Healthy citizens are the greatest asset any country can have”.

We cannot compromise on the health of our populations and this is why we have to meet the new pressure on public spending with even greater collaboration.

It has been a pleasure for me to see the Healthcare DENMARK Ambassador Network unfold and provide value during the 5 years it has existed and I believe that, with the new developments, the network will continue to expand and grow in the years to come.

Learning from each other and supporting each other through experience exchange and the sharing of best practice is the perhaps the best, if not the only way to meet the future. This is the key objective of Healthcare DENMARK; to facilitate a network where knowledge sharing is nurtured and where everyone benefits.

Thank you.