Key points
- Helsinki passed 700,000 residents in August 2026, and 21% of residents spoke a foreign language as their mother tongue at the end of 2025.1
- Finnish patient record entries must be made without delay, and at the latest within five days of the patient leaving the appointment.3
- Since 1 January 2026, the Permit and Supervisory Agency has carried out the licensing and supervision work that Valvira used to do.2
- More than two million new documents are stored in the Kanta Services every day, and public and private providers both use them.45
- wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic.
Summary
A Helsinki clinic can use AI for notes and patient messages in 2026 when each record entry names its author and time, entries are made within five days of the visit and access logs are kept intact for twelve years. The Permit and Supervisory Agency supervises private health care, the Data Protection Ombudsman supervises the data and the Kanta Services carry records between providers.
Helsinki clinics on wai finish each day with every record entry signed, well inside Finland's five-day limit, and with the day's messages answered. The patient documents decree, the new national supervisory agency and the Kanta Services set the terms.
See it in your clinicThirty minutes on your own patients and doctors.
Request a demoWatch a Lauttasaari mother's late message turn into a paediatric booking with a euro deposit, the draft approved by reception and the note later signed within the decree's limit.
| Body or rule | What it requires | What to ask | How wai meets it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, the Permit and Supervisory Agency | National licensing and supervision since 1 January 2026, taking over Valvira's tasks | Who signs each AI-drafted entry | Only named clinicians sign notes, and each signature is logged to them |
| Decree 94/2022, section 8 | Entries made without delay, at the latest within five days | How soon after the appointment is the draft ready | The note is drafted during the consultation, for the clinician to edit and sign |
| Decree 94/2022, section 10 | Name and position of the author and the time of the entry | Does each entry carry its author and time | Every signature is logged with name and time |
| Decree 94/2022, sections 3 and 24 | Integrity secured, access logs kept intact for at least twelve years | How long are logs kept and can they be exported | Every message, draft, approval and signature is logged and exportable |
| Office of the Data Protection Ombudsman | Supervision of personal data under the GDPR | Where is the record held | Records hosted in Finland, with role-based access enforced in the database |
| Kanta Services | Patient data shared between public and private providers | How signed documents reach Kanta | Built to connect to the Kanta Services, set up with each clinic |
The private care market in Helsinki
Helsinki's population passed 700,000 in August 2026, after record growth since 2023.1 The number of Helsinki residents born abroad has more than tripled since 2000, and 19% of residents were born abroad while 13% are foreign citizens.1
Finland's records travel with the patient. Public and private health care providers and pharmacies use the Kanta Services to share patient and client data, and in 2024 MyKanta was used by 3.3 million people a total of 41.1 million times.45
The rules a Helsinki clinic works under
Supervision moved to a new agency on 1 January 2026. The Permit and Supervisory Agency, Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, took over the licensing, guidance and supervision tasks previously handled by Valvira and the regional state administrative agencies, with about 2,000 staff, offices in 18 locations, national competence and its head office in Tampere.2
The patient documents decree sets the timing and authorship. Under decree 94/2022 of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, entries must be made without delay and at the latest within five days of the patient leaving the appointment or the service event ending.3 Each record must show the name and position of the person who made the entry and when it was made.3 Patient documents must be created and kept so that their integrity and usability are secured for the whole keeping period, and access logs must be kept intact and unaltered for at least twelve years.3
In wai a note stays a draft until the clinician signs it, and the signature carries the clinician's name and the time. The draft is written during the consultation, so the entry can be signed well inside the five-day limit.
The Office of the Data Protection Ombudsman in Helsinki is Finland's member of the European Data Protection Board and the supervisory authority for personal data.6 Patients hear about the recording before it begins and can say no, using wording from the consent form template.
Kela develops the Kanta Services together with the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, under the strategic guidance of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.4 wai is built to connect to the Kanta Services. We set up your clinic's connection with you.
wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic. wai is compliant with these rules and built for clinics in Helsinki. A Helsinki clinic keeps its records in Finland.
The languages Helsinki patients write in
Helsinki counts its languages by registered mother tongue. At the end of 2025, 21% of residents had a mother tongue other than Finnish, Sami or Swedish, against 11% across Finland, and the city records more than 150 mother tongues.1
With any language understood, wai matches each draft to the patient's mother tongue, and the receptionist approves it before it leaves the clinic.7
What a demo shows in Helsinki
The demo opens on a message sent at 21.45 by a mother in Lauttasaari who wants a paediatric appointment for her daughter before a family trip. At 8.10 an engineer in Kalasatama rings while the line is busy, and his missed call becomes a drafted text suggesting a callback time.
wai attaches the message and the missed call to the correct patients, looks up when each doctor is busy in Google Calendar, Outlook or Apple Calendar, and writes two drafts in the senders' own languages. The receptionist approves them before the first appointment. The mother confirms with a euro deposit by card or Apple Pay, paid straight into the clinic's own Stripe account, and the receipt arrives with the intake questionnaire for her daughter.
After the appointment the doctor edits and signs the drafted note and the referral, and the entry carries the doctor's name, position and time, as the decree requires.3
For health systems, insurers and public services in Helsinki
Private health care groups, insurers and public services in the capital region can commission a system on wai that carries their brand and keeps its data in Finland. The first stage is one pathway with measures chosen in advance, and data, configuration and model rights are settled contractually, as the page for health systems and governments shows.
Where to start
First, measure how long entries currently take to reach the record after each appointment, against the five-day limit.3 Second, confirm that the vendor keeps access logs intact and unaltered for twelve years.3
Third, map which signed documents go to the Kanta Services and who sends them.4 Fourth, settle how each clinician mentions the recording at the start of a visit. Group last month's messages by mother tongue and by hour received, and bring the result to a Helsinki demo. Finnish sources on this page were read on 15 October 2026, and the clinic's adviser should confirm how they apply.
Share a month of messages grouped by mother tongue, and we show which of them your reception could have closed before lunch the same day.
Frequently asked questions
How soon must a Finnish clinic write up an appointment?
Without delay, and at the latest within five days of the patient leaving, under section 8 of decree 94/2022.3
Who supervises private clinics in Finland now that Valvira has closed?
The Permit and Supervisory Agency, which began on 1 January 2026 and took over Valvira's licensing and supervision tasks.2
How long must access logs be kept?
At least twelve years from when they were created, intact and unaltered, under section 24 of decree 94/2022.3
Do private clinics in Helsinki use Kanta?
Public and private health care providers both use the Kanta Services.4 wai is built to connect to the Kanta Services. We set up your clinic's connection with you.
Who supervises data protection in Finland?
The Office of the Data Protection Ombudsman, based in Helsinki, Finland's member of the European Data Protection Board.6
Where are the records held?
wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic.
Sources
- 1Helsingin kaupunki, 2026Helsingin väkiluku ylitti 700 000Read 15 October 2026Read source
- 2Aluehallintovirasto, via STT Info, 2025Suomen suurimpiin virastoihin kuuluva uusi Lupa- ja valvontavirasto aloittaa 1.1.2026Read 15 October 2026Read source
- 3Finlex, 2022Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriön asetus potilasasiakirjoista 94/2022Read 15 October 2026Read source
- 4Kanta Services, Kela, 2026About Kanta ServicesRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 5Kanta Services, Kela, 2026Kanta statisticsRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 6European Data Protection Board, 2026Members of the European Data Protection BoardRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 7wai, 2026wai changelog, intake answered by voice in any languageRead 15 October 2026Read source
Every Helsinki entry signed the same day, every message answered before evening.
See it in fifteen minutes with a clinician who signs notes in wai every day, using a day of your own appointments. We come back to you within one working day.
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Thirty minutes on your own patients, doctors and rules, in your market. We reply within one working day, and the clinics that partner with us early shape what we build next.
See what wai does between the visits