Research Professor

Professor Erkki Vartiainen graduated in medicine in 1981 and completed his doctorate in 1983.  He has been an Adjunct Professor in Public Health at the University of Kuopio in Finland since 1985 and Research Professor in National Institute of Health and Welfare (THL) since 2000. His Welfare and Health Promotion Division at the National Institute for Health and Welfare is one of the world's largest groups conducting research into the prevention of chronic diseases.  He was a co-principal investigator with the North Karelia Project, which was the world's most successful heart disease reduction program.

His distinguished record of consultancies and collaborations includes work for the World Health Organisation, World Bank, European Union, and national governments.  Since 2004 he has been Director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention.  He has published over 350 papers.In early 2011 Professor Erkki Vartiainen (MD, PhD) was awarded honoris causa, the Degree of Doctor of Science from Flinders University. Professor Vartiainen has maintained a close association with the GGT UDRH since 2002 when he provided invaluable assistance with the development of the Department's inaugural work on diabetes prevention, the Diabetes Prevention Project Initiative. Since this time he has continued to offer advice and breadth of experience to the Director and other GGT UDRH and Flinders University researchers, including leading on various research grants; substantive contribution to the Department's public health program's strategic directions; participation in writing retreats and various other public health workshops, and mentorship of academic staff.

Flinders University is fortunate to have such a distinguished international colleague prepared to share his valuable time and expertise with the University in the support of its public health research. Professor Vartiainen, along with his colleague Adjunct Professor Tiina Laatikainen (MD, PhD), has also been appointed an Adjunct Professor with Flinders University.

15-year-old adolescents, alcohol use cultural differences, structural equation modelling (SEM).