Magnus Gisslén, Professor and Chief Physician at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, took up the position as State Epidemiologist in September 2023 and chosed to terminate his employment in August 2025.

Magnus Gisslén. Photo: Gunnar Jönsson

In posts on LinkedIn, Gisslén published four videos stating that the Public Health Agency of Sweden has serious problems, including lack of medical expertise in management and poor leadership.

He also emphasizes the danger of this, for example in the event of a new pandemic.

The agency’s General Director, Olivia Wigzell has responded to Gisslén’s videos by admitting that there are issues that need to be addressed, and she has proposed different measures to fix this, including closer scientific collaboration and overseeing the medical expertise at the agency. Wigzell was summoned to the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, Jakob Forssmed. After the meeting Forssmed announced that the measures that have been taken are good and necessary, but that more is needed.

Related article

Sweden’s State Epidemiologist resigns and criticizes the Public Health Agency

Magnus Gisslén took up the position as State Epidemiologist in September 2023 and has now chosen to terminate his employment. In posts on LinkedIn, Gisslén published four videos stating that the Public Health Agency of Sweden has serious problems, including lack of medical expertise in management and poor leadership.

Interview: Statens Serum Institut in Denmark

In one of his LinkedIn videos, Gisslén compares the Public Health Agency of Sweden to its Danish equivalent, Statens Serum Institut (SSI), where, according to him, the management consists of leading medical experts and where important research is conducted.

Having leading medical experts involved in decision-making is important, but so is ensuring that we have experience in managing large, complex organizations.

“First of all, it is important to point out that in Denmark the tasks corresponding to those of the Public Health Agency of Sweden is shared between different organizations underneath the Ministry of Health. However, most of these organizations have medical doctors as CEOs,” states Tyra Grove Krause, EVP at SSI to NLS.

Tyra Grove Krause. Photo: SSI

“At SSI, we place strong emphasis on combining medical expertise with broad leadership competencies in our management. Having leading medical experts involved in decision-making is important, but so is ensuring that we have experience in managing large, complex organizations. We see the best results when these perspectives are combined.”

NLS also asked her what she believes are key factors for gaining public trust for an institute like SSI.

“Public trust depends on transparency, scientific integrity, and clear communication. We believe it is important to provide accurate information, even when it is complex, and to explain both what we know and what remains uncertain,” says Krause.

This partnership reflects the importance we place on bridging basic research and applied public health.

Key factors for preventing and combating infectious and congenital diseases include strong surveillance systems, close collaborations with healthcare providers and academia, and the ability to rapidly translate research into practice, she adds. “It is also essential to maintain international collaborations, as diseases do not respect borders.”

An example of SSI’s collaboration with academia is its recent strategic partnership with the University of Copenhagen under the Novo Nordisk Foundation Initiative for Vaccines and Immunity (NIVI), NIVI Research Center.

“This partnership reflects the importance we place on bridging basic research and applied public health. By working closely with academic partners, we aim to strengthen Denmark’s preparedness against future infectious threats and support the development of new vaccines,” explains Krause.