Research Strategy

Another goal of the research and development operations is to generate new scientific knowledge and to help Veripalvelu’s experts become recognized specialists in their respective fields. This work promotes understanding of scientific methods, the critical evaluation of research data and reports, and the application of research findings in Veripalvelu’s decision‑making.

Veripalvelu’s research strategy states that: 

• the scientific utilization of nationally centralized blood services is part of Veripalvelu’s core mission, and
• Veripalvelu’s research activities provide a significant contribution to Finnish medical research

The strategic priorities of the research operations, as decided by Veripalvelu’s Board, are:

• Effectiveness of the blood supply chain
• Compatibility of cells and tissues
• Development of products and services

Our current scientific areas of expertise include modeling and data analytics of the blood supply chain, blood cells and their extracellular vesicles, therapeutic immune cells, as well as genome and data analyses related to the compatibility of blood, tissue, and organ transplantation.

In addition to these projects, the implementation of the research strategy is supported by annual grants awarded from the Veripalvelu Research Fund, primarily for scientific research conducted outside Veripalvelu.

Veripalvelu’s scientific research is mainly centralized in the R&D Department, located in Biomedicum on the University of Helsinki’s Meilahti campus. The department currently employs 13 researchers with doctoral degrees and about 10 doctoral candidates. The annual budget is approximately 2 million euros, of which about 30% is covered by external funding.

Research projects and doctoral theses are also carried out at Veripalvelu’s main site in Vehkala, Vantaa, as well as in collaboration with partners outside Veripalvelu. The Cell Production Centre develops and manufactures new therapeutic cell products for patient treatment, and Veripalvelu’s production and medical experts conduct scientific research within their own fields, including studies on blood products.

Veripalvelu’s Biobank supports medical research and product development projects in accordance with the Biobank Act, based on samples and data from blood donors who have provided biobank consent. The biobank’s special focus area is transfusion medicine.

Values of Veripalvelu’s Research Activities

• Respect for patients, voluntary blood donors and stem cell donors, and customers. At the heart of Veripalvelu’s operations are the patient and the voluntary donor. Their participation and contributions are essential for ensuring the impact of research activities.
• Ethics. Veripalvelu follows the guidelines issued by the Finnish National Board on Research Integrity (TENK).
• Impact. We produce evidence‑based new knowledge on the effectiveness of our operations and services. Research findings are used for the benefit of donors, the population, patients, and society, and as  foundation for decision‑making within Veripalvelu.
• Critical approach. Research results must be published in reputable peer‑reviewed scientific journals.
• Openness. We adhere to good governance. We follow an open research policy: we communicate as openly as possible to all stakeholders about our projects, their objectives, and our collaboration partners. We publish research results on open‑access platforms to increase their use and impact.

We collect only personal data necessary for our operations and protect the data in accordance with its nature. Data is processed only by individuals who need it for their work tasks, and our employees are bound by confidentiality.

More information on data protection:

• Veripalvelu’s Data Protection
• Privacy Notice of the Research Register