Changes to health, social services threaten business

The health and social services sector are undergoing a major change in both local and global environment, which have created uncertainty to business planning and development in companies, according to a report on Health and Social Services published in Helsinki on Wednesday.

Companies play a significant role as service providers; therefore, uncertainty may slow down the development of innovations and better services, said a press release issued by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.

At the same time, however, challenges provide an opportunity to further raise the quality of services and to promote their exports.

Since 2017, the number of companies in the health and social services sector has decreased by approximately 200. In 2018, there were more than 18,000 companies in the sector, most of them involved in health services. The number of employees in the sector’s companies has increased, amounting to nearly 80,000 in 2018.

The sector’s companies, with the exception of micro-enterprises, are recording higher turnovers. Small-scale entrepreneurship is typical in the health and social services sector.

The presence of different sized companies in the sector drives the renewal of services. It is important that companies of all sizes can operate on the market and seek growth. Competition for skilled employees is intensifying in the health and social services sector, as in many other sectors.