Ulrika Ådén is new secretary general for medicine and health at Vetenskapsrådet
KI professor and pediatrician Ulrika Ådén will take over as secretary general for medicine and health at Vetenskapsrådet, the Swedish Research Council, in September. She wants to strengthen the impact of research in healthcare and society.
Ulrika Ådén has been a professor of neonatology and pediatrics at the Department of Women's and Children's Health at Karolinska Institutet since 2016 and works as a senior physician at Karolinska University Hospital. On September 1, 2026, she will take up her new position at the Swedish Research Council, where she will lead the work in the area of medicine and health.
Professor Ådén's research focuses on how the brain's basic functions develop during childhood.
“I believe my experience from both preclinical and clinical research at various universities is a good background for leading the work in medicine and health at the Swedish Research Council,” says Ulrika Ådén.
Since 2022, she has also been a donation professor and senior physician in pediatrics at Linköping University. In her new role, she wants to prioritize international collaboration and ensure that research has a greater impact outside of academia.
“I want to contribute to a stronger impact of research in both healthcare, policy and society,” she says.
Ulrika Ådén has previously served as chair of the Swedish Pediatric Association and led the Swedish Research Council's preparatory group for research on women's and children's health.