Nordic Society for Circumpolar Health (NSCH)
(Former Nordic Society for Arctic Medicine)

Purpose
The purpose of the Society is to promote and spread interest in health problems in circumpolar and related areas. The society supports educational activities within the field of circumpolar health and develops the networking of researchers and experts in the Nordic countries.

Activities
The society supports the organizing of scientific meetings. It disseminates information of relevant circumpolar events to its members. NSCH maintains connections with the other societies of circumpolar health. As a member of the International Union of Circumpolar Health, the society is also actively involved with networking activities related to circumpolar research, policy, and practice.

NSCH is one of the publishers of the International Association of Circumpolar Health Publishers which publishes the International Journal of Circumpolar Health and Circumpolar Health Supplements. It is a successor of the journal originally published by the Nordic Council for Arctic Medicine.

History
Nordic countries have for a long time had a common interest on matters related on their arctic features. In 1995 altogether 47 Nordic institutions took care of cooperative projects under the umbrella of the Nordic Council of Ministers. One of the Nordic institutions was the Nordic Council for Arctic Medicine that was established in 1974 and operated at the University of Oulu. The purpose of this council was to promote research related to arctic medicine. This involves e.g. maintenance and improvement of human performance in arctic and related areas, especially among indigenous people.

The Council organised several meetings with physicians, nurses and health service workers in Nordic countries annually, published a scientific journal and supported research in arctic medicine. During the reorganisation process of the Nordic institutions the Nordic Council of Arctic Medicine was groundlessly ceased in 1997 (Nordisk Nytte, Oktober 1995). The traditional Nordic cooperation within human wellbeing in arctic and related areas appeared to evaporate as smoke into air.

In order to ensure research related to human wellbeing in northern areas physicians and scientists established the Nordic Society for Arctic Medicine in 2000 in Harstad at the 11th Congress on Circumpolar Health. The idea of establishing the Society was presented already in 1997 in Copenhagen at the last meeting of the Nordic Council of Arctic Medicine. The Nordic Society for Arctic Medicine was officially registered in Finland in 2002. The name was changed to Nordic Society for Circumpolar Health in 2010.