UIC Barcelona has obtained a competitive fund of €20,000 in the Llavor category, awarded by the Agency for the Management of University and Research Grants (AGAUR). This aid will go towards the development of the first phase of “MedMind: Innovació Digital per a la Salut Mental del Personal Sanitari”, a project led by Isabella Meneghel, researcher and teacher of the Department of Psychology. The team of researchers also includes Carlos Blasco, a psychologist specialising in occupational health; Carmen Soler Pagán, from the RH Saludable consulting firm, as a business mentor; and Iris Crespo, a researcher and lecturer in the Department of Psychology at UIC Barcelona.

As the head of the study explains, “the specific characteristics of the work environment healthcare personnel find themselves in, make them more likely to suffer from certain mental health problems, such as burnout. We therefore want to develop a digital tool specifically designed to respond to the needs of this group, taking into account aspects such as long working hours, a high degree of responsibility and bereavement, which are unique to this sector”.  With an initial application format, MedMind will use technologies such as the Software as a Service (SaaS) model and people analytics techniques to identify sources of stress, monitor and analyse working conditions to improve the mental health of these professionals.

“The platform will allow professionals to self-evaluate their emotional well-being and underlying causes, so they can receive personalised recommendations. In addition, healthcare organisations will be able to analyse the mental health of their teams in a segmented and anonymous way, helping to implement measures to prevent burnout,” adds Meneghel.

The first phase of the project will focus on assessing the technical and commercial feasibility of the project. “The results we obtain will allow us to apply for future competitive calls, such as the Producte category, to move towards the development of a functional prototype and its large-scale implementation,” says the study's lead researcher.

With this initiative, UIC Barcelona strengthens its commitment to research and innovation to contribute to the well-being of health professionals, and to address the current challenges facing the healthcare sector.

UIC Barcelona currently has one hundred competitive projects in progress.