About Oma Häme

Oma Häme is a Wellbeing Services County in Finland, covering public social- and healthcare for 170,000 residents with over 6,000 employees. It was formed from a group of fragmented municipalities, which shaped a practical, clinician-led approach to technology from the beginning.

The challenge: documentation was consuming hours every working day

Finland's Social Affairs and Health organisation published a survey at the end of 2024 showing that doctors, nurses, and social workers spend up to three hours and fifteen minutes per day on documentation. At Oma Häme, that pattern was familiar.

As Minna Belik, a nurse at the Oma Häme Digital Social and Health Centre, explained:

"Structured recording takes up a huge amount of time and cognitive energy. You think about how to phrase something so it's not too long, but so the important things still come through. Hours go to documentation every single day."

In case management for older adults, documentation was taking longer than the client encounters themselves. On average, up to 2 hours and 35 minutes per client. A full service needs assessment could take up to 5 hours to document, spread across multiple systems and work stages.

Clinicians divided their attention between the patient and the screen. By the end of the day, the notes were still waiting.

Clinicians across the whole organisation adopt Tandem, not just doctors

Toni Suihko, Development and ICT Director, led the initiative. Oma Häme had previously built its own prototype AI documentation tool, but quickly concluded the organisation's focus should stay on caring for people, not maintaining software. When commercial options reached the Finnish market, Tandem was piloted across healthcare, social care, and home care teams.

Feedback from staff shaped every stage of the decision.

"This is one of the easiest projects we've had from a development and IT perspective. Usually you have to push hard to get people in the field on board. This one marketed itself."

Social workers, home care staff, and nurses all came on board alongside doctors. For Toni Suihko, this was one of the most satisfying parts of the rollout.

"In social and health care, social services often feel overlooked. Development always seems to go to healthcare. This has been something of a revelation for family and social services, that technology can come to them too."

Tandem runs during the consultation, so notes are ready when it ends

In practice, Tandem listens during the consultation or call. The clinician stays focused on the patient. A structured note is ready to review when the visit ends.

For Aleksei Derevlev, a doctor at Hämeenlinna Health Centre, the shift was visible from his first week. A complex consultation covering diabetes, cardiovascular risk, and gastrointestinal problems ran to seventy-five minutes.

"I pressed the button and in about four minutes Tandem had processed the whole thing. I wouldn't have remembered everything on my own."

He added:

"I can use more time actually talking to the patient and getting a proper picture of the situation. Afterwards I've got a well-structured foundation to work from."

Time, energy, and cognitive load were all reduced

Notes were completed during or immediately after consultations rather than accumulating through the day. In case management for older adults, where documentation had previously taken up to 2 hours and 35 minutes per client, finalising an entry with Tandem now takes an average of less than 17 minutes.

For Minna Belik, the effect went beyond time saved.

"What used to be the most disliked task is now practically my favourite. Tandem is the first tool I've felt gives me one hundred per cent genuine benefit in my work."

For clinicians in the Digital Social and Health Centre, where daily call volumes are high, the time savings were direct.

"I can handle more calls in the same amount of time because the documentation is so much more automated."

The ambition now is to grow what's already working

Oma Häme is moving from pilot to full deployment across all its services. A randomised study is planned to measure the impact properly in a high-volume consultation setting.

As Toni Suihko put it:

"We can increase productivity and improve wellbeing at work at the same time. The old way of thinking is that you squeeze everything out of people to get more done. That's not how it has to work."