Archived news item
Alko Inc. finances a professorial post in addiction medicine
Alko Inc., the national alcoholic beverage retailing monopoly in Finland, is to make a substantial donation to finance medical research on intoxicants and substance abuse.
The University will receive the sum of 400,000 Euros towards the costs of a professorial post in intoxicant medicine and part of the half million Euros needed for teaching and research in this area.
Alko will be donating a total of 2.5 million Euros to endeavours aimed a reducing the damage caused by alcohol. This was decided at the Alko general meeting on 6 April.
The primary purpose of the donation is to ensure the essential resources for the teaching at university level of teaching in addiction medicine and substance abuse. On the other hand the research work will ensure that decision-makers in intoxicant issues, those doing substance abuse work and professionals in social and health care will constantly have access to the most recent information on the effects of alcohol.
For several years now there has been a professorial post in addiction medicine at the University of Tampere, partly funded by Alko. The research work of Professor Kaija Seppä, who currently holds the post on a temporary basis, has been concerned with the identification of risky drinking and means of detecting risky drinking. Professor Seppä has also been instrumental in the adoption in primary health care of brief interventions and to making these part of the teaching in intoxicant medicine in the training of doctors.
Alko's previous donation in 2007 of one million Euros for teaching and research commemorated its 75th anniversary.
