New health station service point for Leppävaara residents
At the beginning of September, some Espoo residents in the Leppävaara Health Station catchment area will become clients of a new service point. The change is intended to improve access to care and strengthen long-term care relationships with an assigned personal doctor and nurse. Residents affected by the change will each receive a letter notifying them of it. Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County aims for every resident to have their own personal doctor by 2030.
From 1 September 2026, around 5,000 Espoo residents in the Leppävaara Health Station catchment area will become clients of the Lähilääkärit Leppävaara service point. The service point is located at Sello Shopping Centre, by Ratsutori.
Residents moving to the new service point were selected at random from among residents in the Leppävaara Health Station catchment area. However, members of the same household will always be assigned to the same doctor.
Only residents who receive a letter notifying them of the change are affected. Other residents in the Leppävaara Health Station catchment area will continue to visit their current health station.
The new service point will have two personal doctor–nurse teams. Under the personal doctor model, each client is cared for by a regular doctor and nurse who know their situation and are responsible for continuity of care.
Clients will pay the same fees as they would for services provided at a health station run by the Wellbeing Services County. The letter explaining the change will also tell clients how they can switch back to their previous health station.
“Our aim is to ensure that clients receive care as smoothly as possible and that they can contact a doctor and nurse they know when they need to. A long-term care relationship is particularly beneficial for clients who need services regularly,” says Valtteri Kiuru, Service Line Director for Health Station Services.
Leppävaara service point expands the new operating model
The Lähilääkärit Leppävaara service point is part of Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County’s efforts to strengthen the personal doctor model in primary healthcare.
In recent years, the Wellbeing Services County has introduced the independent practitioner model in its health station services and will expand it further in autumn 2026. Under the model, physician services are procured through competitive tendering, and the selected physicians work as self-employed practitioners. They may provide services either at facilities operated by the Wellbeing Services County or at their own practices.
At the Leppävaara service point, two specialists in general practice, each working with a dedicated nurse, will be responsible for health station services for around 5,000 clients.
Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County is a frontrunner in Finland in expanding the use of independent practitioners in public healthcare. The Wellbeing Services County aims to strengthen the personal doctor model, improve continuity of care and make it easier for residents to get an appointment.
“Our goal is for more and more residents to have a familiar doctor and nurse they know. The new Leppävaara service point is one step towards that goal,” says Tommi Uimonen, Service Line Director responsible for procuring services from independent practitioners.
Further information:
Valtteri Kiuru, Service Line Director, Health Station Services, Northern Area
Tommi Uimonen, Service Line Director, Developing Services, Joint Health and Social Services