15 years of Finnish National Medicines Day

The next National Medicines Day on Thursday 18 March 2027 will mark the 15th anniversary of the National Medicines Day. The shared national theme day of users of medicines and healthcare professionals has been organised since 2012.

- The National Medicines Day focuses on the users of medicines. Over the years, local events have been built around the day to enable low-threshold discussions between users of medicines and professionals. The national event has also attracted a large number of participants. One of the most important benefits of the National Medicine Day is that it reminds all of us of the importance of keeping the information on medications up to date and knowing the objectives of medicinal treatment, and provides an opportunity to ask about our own medication, says Hanna Tolonen, Head of Unit.

The goal of the day is to encourage users of medicines to ask questions and talk about their medicines and their own pharmaceutical treatment. Finnish National Medicines Day is planned at the national level and organised at the local level.

Join the planning of the theme day 

The Planning Team of the National Network for the Development of Pharmacotherapy is responsible for the annual theme and the planning of the day.  

The Planning Team convenes a few times in the autumn to prepare the theme day. You can sign up for the Team by contacting its chair Tarja Pajunen ([email protected]). The Planning Team will have its organisation meeting on Thursday 10 September 2026 from 9.00 to 10.30. 

- The Planning Team is open to all social welfare, healthcare, pharmacy and teaching professionals, organisations and users of medicines interested in the implementation of safe pharmacotherapy. The National Medicines Day has been implemented annually in this multidisciplinary and rewarding cooperation, and the members of the Planning Team represent agents from across Finland.  As a rule, the team works remotely. We meet about six times during the operating year, says Pajunen. 

How do you participate in the National Medicines Day?

Every year, the National Medicines Day is implemented across Finland as separate events held by different operators or in cooperation by several local actors. The actors may include, for example, private pharmacies, patient organisations, organisations in the healthcare and social welfare sector, and students and educational institutions of the sector. The pre-produced materials on Fimea’s website can be used for the events. 

At the location of a local event at a pharmacy or in a healthcare unit, information about the importance of an up-to-date list of medicines can be disseminated, or the Instructions for the safe use of medicines guide can be handed out. Local meetings can also be held to follow the national webinar of the National Medicines Day. The events increase the opportunities of medicine users and healthcare professionals to ask questions and discuss pharmaceutical treatment and sources of reliable medicines information. 

You can also participate in the National Medicines Day by sharing content related to the theme day in social media channels with the hashtag #TunneLääkkeesi and #LääkehoidonPäivä.

The National Medicines Day 2026 webinar attracted a record audience 

The national main event of the National Medicines Day 2026 was the webinar themed 'Medicinal treatment begins with knowledge – OTC medicines as part of my medication', organised on Thursday 12 March 2026.  

The webinar attracted a record audience and extremely good feedback was received on the speeches given by experts. More than 830 people followed the webinar live. The recording of the webinar has also been popular and can still be viewed on the event page of the webinar.

More information:

Finnish National Medicines Day website (link in Finnish)  

Recording of the National Medicines Day 2026 webinar (in Finnish)  

The “Instructions for the safe use of medicines” guide