Important collaboration

SAk and HA have a long history of collaboration, including in teaching, research and academic activities. The Health Sciences Research Institute of the University of Akureyri and Akureyri Hospital (HHSA) provides a joint platform for the institutions to promote research, innovation and knowledge creation in the health sciences. For many years, SAk staff have also participated in teaching and academic activities at HA. The new arrangement represents a further development of this collaboration, with Gísli Kort now undertaking designated projects for SAk as part of his role at the university.

Community engagement and service

“It is extremely important to raise the profile of research conducted by SAk staff and ensure that its outcomes contribute to academic knowledge nationally and internationally. This has been achieved very successfully through the hospital and university’s collaboration within the Health Sciences Research Institute of SAk and HA. Over the past decade, the institute has laid the foundations for SAk staff to also hold academic positions at HA and to participate actively and visibly in the university’s work,” says Brynjar Karlsson, Dean of the School of Health Sciences at HA. He adds:

“By formalising Gísli’s work at the hospital in this way, we are taking the first step in the opposite direction. When the work carried out by HA’s academic staff at SAk becomes an organised and formally recognised part of their university roles, numerous opportunities arise to enhance this work and increase its value. This applies both in terms of the university’s research metrics and in demonstrating that the university is truly fulfilling its third mission: engagement with and service to the community.”

A two-way flow

“There are significant opportunities in linking clinical practice, research and teaching even more closely. Clinical practice can generate important research questions, while research findings can be applied more systematically in patient care,” says Gísli.

“The opportunity to work with both SAk and HA enables us to connect the expertise of the two institutions more effectively. Hopefully, this is only the beginning of similar collaboration between SAk and HA, allowing HA’s academic staff to contribute even more to the local community. The flow now formally runs in both directions, and everyone benefits,” says Gísli.

A unique opportunity

“This appointment marks a new phase in the collaboration. For the first time, a formal arrangement has been established under which an HA employee also performs a designated role within SAk under the auspices of HHSA,” says Laufey Hrólfsdóttir, Head of SAk’s Education and Science Department.

“This creates a unique opportunity to strengthen the links between clinical services, teaching and research even further. It is important that this connection works in both directions: that HA’s teachers and researchers maintain close ties with the clinical environment, enabling them to base their teaching and research on experience gained in healthcare services, while SAk benefits from increased research activity, knowledge creation and professional development that support the continued quality of its services,” Laufey adds.

Strengthening ties between the institutions

“This is an important step in the collaboration between SAk and HA. Through this arrangement, we are strengthening the ties between the institutions and creating greater opportunities to integrate clinical practice, research and academic activities. We see considerable potential for developing this collaboration further,” says Gestur Guðrúnarson, Director of Clinical Services at SAk.

The agreement took effect on 1 June 2026 and will remain in force until the end of 2028.