Portrait of Professor Lena von Koch
Lena von Koch - Professor of Healthcare Research at the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society
Lena von Koch passed her physiotherapy exam at Karolinska Institutet in 1970. She continued her training in the USA at the Rancho los Amigos Rehabilitation Center in 1972, and from 1975 to 1976 at Sargent College of Allied Health Professions, Boston University, where she completed a master's course in physiotherapy.
Between 1973 and 1984 Lena von Koch was employed as a physiotherapist at the neurology clinics at Karolinska Hospital. This was also the workplace of Ingrid Odéen, who inspired Lena von Koch to include a research perspective in her work.
In 1984 Lena von Koch moved to Insjön in Dalarna to open a private physiotherapy practice.
In the 1990s Lena von Koch became involved in healthcare research at KI, initially as a research assistant, and then as a doctoral candidate. She gained her PhD in 2000. From 2000 to 2001 she worked at Dalarna University. Since 2002 she has worked as a senior research fellow at KI currently at the occupational therapy section of the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society.
Lena von Koch was appointed professor of healthcare research at Karolinska Institutet in 2011.
Research area
Healthcare research looks at how care is managed and how it functions - on the macro, meso and micro levels - and contributes knowledge of how it may be improved. The subject is multidisciplinary and includes medicine, nursing science, accounting, political science and psychology. Questions of organisation and structure, management, guidelines, accounting and insurance systems are central themes.
Lena von Koch focuses on how the healthcare system might identify patients' needs and problems more easily.
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