Cultural Sustainability in Danish Community Health Centres

Forside af InDiMedia9
Bidragsydere

Nanna Finne Skovrup, Aalborg University, Denmark, https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8047-2917
Jens F. Jensen, Aalborg University, Denmark, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2293-7569

Nøgleord

Kulturel bæredygtighed, Dansk sundhedssektor, Tværfagligt samarbejde, Organisatorisk kultur, Sundhedskvalitet, Sundhedscentre

Synopsis

This study conceptualises the emerging notion of cultural sustainability in the context of health and healthcare and examines how the concept may be translated into healthcare practice. It situates cultural sustainability within broader debates on sustainability and examines its relationship to the established environmental, economic, and social dimensions of sustainability. Drawing on empirical material from the Danish healthcare sector, the study analyses how cultural sustainability is articulated and operationalised in healthcare settings.

Based on semi-structured interviews with regional and municipal stakeholders working in Community Health Centres, the analysis explores cultural dimensions of healthcare practices, including interdisciplinary collaboration, teamwork, and organisational coherence. The findings highlight the importance of communication, role clarity, shared organisational culture, and professional identities as key components of cultural sustainability. Overall, the study demonstrates that cultural sustainability plays a cross-cutting role in shaping healthcare practices, workplace environments, and quality of care across organisational and institutional contexts.

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Forfatterbiografier
Nanna Finne Skovrup, Aalborg University, Denmark

Nanna is Assistant Professor of Sustainable Community Health in the research group Planning for Urban Sustainability at the Department of Sustainability and Planning, Aalborg University. She holds a Master’s degree in Techno-Anthropology and a PhD in social sustainable health­care, with a focus on Danish healthcare centres. Her research addresses social and cultural sustainability in health and urban planning, as well as the relationship between technology and sustainability, and how these dynamics shape everyday life, professional practices, and institutional structures.

Jens F. Jensen, Aalborg University, Denmark

Jens is Professor of Interactive Multimedia at the Department of Culture and Communication, Aalborg University. His research interests include interactive digital media; interaction and interactivity; the experience economy, experience design and IT-supported experiences; user experience and user experience design; cultural analysis of technology and media cultures; and sustainability, including cultural sustainability.

He is Co-Director of the research group InDiMedia (Interactive Digital Media & Experience Design) and Co-Director of the research group MeET (Metaverse & Experience Technologies), both at Aalborg University. In addition, he serves as Vice-Chair of the Danish Centre for Museum Research (DCM).

Citation/Eksport

Finne Skovrup, N., & F. Jensen, J. (2026). Cultural Sustainability in Danish Community Health Centres. Aalborg University Open Publishing. https://doi.org/10.54337/aau.indimedia9