Reducing social distance through co-design
Public healthcare in Finland is based on the provision of tax-funded services, which, in times of limited public finances and an ageing population, translates into a demand that often exceeds available resources. Since municipalities are legally obliged to provide their services equally within binding time frames and at a predefined level of quality, there is a strong demand for solutions that will help cut costs, optimise the utilisation of available resources and save on expensive treatments through preventive care. The book "Designing for Wellbeing", published by Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, summarizes a broad range of design projects carried out during the World Design Capital year in Helsinki 2012. In the chapter "Reducing social distance through co-design", Zagros Hatami and I share our observations from our involvement in three co-design projects related to the provision of better public health care by means of information technology.