The University has celebrated the fifth anniversary of Support University Psychology and Psychiatry Clinic with an open day attended by the mayor, the councillor of Health and Volunteering and the councillor of Education, Universities, Multiculturalism and Animal Welfare of the City of Sant Cugat, together with Dr. Montserrat Pàmias, the medical director of the Clinic, and María Fernández Capo, director of the Department of Basic Sciences
Since its inauguration in 2018, the university clinic located on the Sant Cugat Campus has become a benchmark for psychological and psychiatric care, ensuring the mental health of the population of Vallès Occidental. Throughout these five years of activity, the Support Clinic has experienced significant growth and has registered an increase of 400% in patient numbers. In addition, to adapt the services of the Clinic to the needs of the different groups of the population, the Clinic has created Support Mobile, an initiative that allows professionals to move around schools, companies and non-profit entities that may request on-site care. With this growth, the number of professionals working at Support has doubled, which has allowed it to offer broader and more specialised care to the nearly 1,000 patients who have been treated at the Clinic.
As Dr Pàmias explained during the event, “mental health is fundamental for us and we are satisfied to see that over the last five years we have been able to contribute to the well-being of children, young people, adults and elderly people in our territory, offering affordable care for everyone. As professionals specialised in different areas, we want to promote healthy habits and provide out-patients with an effective response based on scientific evidence on the mental disorders and discomfort they encounter,” she added.
As a university clinic, Support also embodies UIC Barcelona’s values and commitment to teaching and research. Accordingly, the Clinic is a teaching example where future psychology professionals can be trained with practical experience from the first year. Research also has a relevant role in the mission of the Clinic and the area of psychology, where projects are developed in various areas that seek to advance knowledge and its practical application for the benefit of the community in general.
Rector Alfonso Méndiz was in charge of giving closing words before taking a tour of the Support facilities. In his speech he thanked the City of Sant Cugat for its commitment to the Clinic and the promotion of mental health and stressed that, “as a university committed to people, the Support Clinic is an essential project that allows us to help people with their mental health, adding to the oral care and palliative support that we offer with the other two university clinics hosted on the Sant Cugat Campus”.
