- The project improves the quality of life of people with mental health problems and involves the development of an innovative social care model.
- The results of the pilot test carried out in Tarragona validate the model of personalised support for people living with mental disorders, preventing, evaluating and acting proactively to improve their quality of life.
The first part of the pilot test of “Siempre Contigo”, the community action platform for emotional and cognitive well-being designed and coordinated by the Institute of Robotics for Dependency (IRD), has been completed. After the implementation among twenty volunteers with a mental health diagnosis in the province of Tarragona, an analysis of the data extracted has been carried out to obtain the first conclusions of the project.
Through NeverAlone’s specialisation in mental health, Siempre Contigo explores the creation of a new model of social care through joint and coordinated action with people with mental health problems, to prevent, evaluate and act proactively to improve their quality of life, offering the necessary support at all times and throughout the life cycle.
The Institute of Robotics began the pilot project last August with the first interviews with patients who were administered the Gencat Scale. Subsequently, in September, the presentation and practice of the use of apps and web in pilot patients was carried out and, finally, the analysis of the pilot tests carried out in the months of October, November and December in twenty people living in Reus and Valls (Tarragona).
The IRD collaborates for the development of this project with two prestigious institutions in the field of mental health. The Institut Pere Mata, headed by Dr. Francesc Xavier Arrufat, is a mental health services operator that manages the entire network in the province of Tarragona. Siempre Contigo relies on its collaboration to provide the project with a team of professionals to define the functional requirements and to carry out the pilot test.
For its part, the Rovira Virgili University of Tarragona is one of the educational institutions of excellence in our country in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Its specialisation in AI is essential to be able to introduce a key element in SiempreContigo for the future automated management of large numbers of dependent beneficiaries.
In addition, the Ave Maria Foundation of Sitges is participating in the “Siempre Contigo” project in the deployment of the tool and in the monitoring of the pilot tests.
The objectives of the IRD once the trial period is over are to promote, prevent, maintain and/or improve the quality of life of the pilot patient through personalised support according to the needs of each person. In addition, we have been able to verify that patients need to feel involved and connected to the social community, while, as far as possible, facilitating their stay at home, promoting their autonomy.
The project has monitored different indicators of the day-to-day life of the users in the pilot, obtaining responses that help to validate Siempre Contigo and improve it for future use in real cases.
According to the activity carried out by the users in the test, the platform receives indicators that allow it to study the behaviour of the users and, therefore, improve their quality of life, adapting the specific plans to be applied in a personalised way based on the data collected both from the indicators used and from the information generated by the sensors installed in 25 percent of the homes.
The indicators also allow mental health service professionals to receive alerts in order to be able to act proactively on the well-being, prevention and quality of life of the final beneficiaries. The tests have been carried out by ensuring the participation of patients in the development and implementation of their own support plans, thus ensuring their involvement and active participation in their well-being. These plans increase the chances of acquiring competencies that are meaningful to the users.
The next phase of the IRD study in the Siempre Contigo project will be the preparation of a report with conclusions by the bio-psycho-social team, the IT team and the Artificial Intelligence team. Various meetings will also be held with patients and professionals to make contributions thanks to the experience and usability of the platform, in the web and app modalities.
This project has been selected by the Secretary of State for the 2030 Agenda in the framework of the subsidies awarded by competitive concurrence for the performance of activities related to the promotion and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Spain, corresponding to the year 2021.