INESC TEC studies the use of the Internet to treat mental illnesses
Its name is E-Compared (European Comparative Effectiveness Research on Internet-based Depression Treatment) and it is one of the most recent projects of INESC TEC’s Information and Computer Graphics Systems Unit (USIG).
The European project wants to study the possibility of using the Internet to treat mental illnesses, such as depression, and it follows another INESC TEC project, the ICT4Depression.
«This project is a follow-up of ICT4Depression so we’re not starting from scratch. We will reformulate what we’ve done in the previous project. The first project was more ambitious in terms of information technologies, while this one focuses more on health», explained Artur Rocha, a researcher at INESC TEC.
E-Compared wants to provide recommendations on the treatment of depression based on the Internet and develop a business plan to implement these services. The INESC TEC team is responsible for designing the entire technological infrastructure, data analysis algorithms and personalised models.
The project involves 14 institutions from 11 European countries – Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom, Spain, Ireland, Switzerland, Poland, Portugal, France and Belgium. The University of Amsterdam is leading the initiative.
The clinical trials will take place in eight of these countries, and institutions will be responsible for the legal, technological and psychology components of the project.
«There are countries such as our own, Poland or Spain, which have a low ratio of therapists developing patents, contrarily to what happens in countries like Sweden», he explained.
The E-Compared will have a duration of 36 months and receive funding from the European Union.
«This will certainly have a great impact at a European level, but it is necessary to prove that these treatments are effective when done this way», Artur Rocha added.
