Long-awaited innovation support for the treatment of depression is coming

An idea that helps to solve challenges in the treatment of depression both for the medical workers and the patient emerged from a workshop organized by science and business park Tehnopol and the pharmaceutical company Janssen Estonia. The idea will be implemented by the software development company Thorgate together with experts in the field of mental health.

According to the WHO and the Ministry of Social Affairs’ Green Paper on Mental Health, depression is the most common mental disorder in the world, causing significant health loss. In addition to causing suffering for the patient, depression also affects the world economy – the world loses $ 1 trillion every year due to the loss of productivity from depression and anxiety. During last spring’s coronavirus quarantine, psychiatrists noticed that more patients with an initial diagnosis of mood or anxiety disorder (ERR) appeared in Estonia. In addition, people themselves indicated that they experienced more stress and anxiety. Every year, more than 20,000 people get diagnosed with a mental disorder in Estonia.

As a disease, depression is very complex, making diagnosis and treatment difficult. There are clear signs in society that there is a stigma about mental health problems that prevents people from seeking help. At the same time, mental health research and statistics show that the need for mental health support services is growing significantly.

To improve the situation, a co-creation workshop was held in May, on the International Day of Mental Health, led by Tehnopol’s Connected Health Cluster and Janssen Estonia to provide innovation support for the treatment of depression. The psychiatrists, GPs, mental health nurses, patients, and government representatives who attended the event reached a number of challenges and solutions that surround patients with depression and the medical team.

During the event, the participants concluded that it is important to improve the communication between the treatment and support team in order to monitor and support the patient on his/her treatment journey holistically while saving health resources. Today, there is no convenient platform for this, so the patient moves between different treatment and support teams without the necessary information. It was also found that the application should allow remote communication with the treatment and support team, ask the patient for feedback, send reminders and motivate, and monitor treatment adherence and effectiveness. The software development company Thorgate will develop the platform.

Käthlin Mikiver, a mental health expert from the Public Health Department of the Ministry of Social Affairs, who participated in the workshop, is pleased that the private sector is also prioritizing mental health issues. “In order to provide timely and best possible mental health support and treatment, it is necessary to find new approaches in the system that would enhance the cooperation between the patient and the treatment team. Modern, science-based and efficient digital solutions are definitely one such option,” said Mikiver.

According to Kairi Kontkar, Jannsen Estonia’s innovation manager, it was a pleasure to see the participants’ openness to technological solutions. “We believe that by essentially involving all parties in the field, it is possible to get from an idea to successful implementation. This is especially the case for developments in the health sector, which are complex in terms of needs and implementation, there are many parties and the sector itself is highly regulated. Therefore, we are pleased that the challenges of mental health are the focus area of the Accelerate Estonia cooperation platform, where it is possible to apply for the implementation of such ideas,” said Kontkar. At the same time, Janssen Estonia’s team will continue to work with experts in the field to hopefully solve some of the other needs that emerged in the workshop.

Piret Hirv, the head of health technology at science and business park Tehnopol and the head of the Connected Health cluster, found that it was nice to see the active and professional contribution of all participants in the event. “It shows that the issue is important and we are ready to make efforts to find solutions. It is vital to use a positive flow, take the proposed idea to the next level and start looking for technologies that support problem-solving. The goal of the Connected Health cluster as an ecosystem integrator is to manage such effective co-creation projects to help realize future solutions that will benefit us all by developing the healthcare sector, ”said Hirv.

According to Taavi Uudam, key account manager of Thorgate, a lot has been said about the technical problems related to mental health treatment, but now, thanks to the workshop, there is a clear description of the need from the end-users. “The patient’s treatment journey must run efficiently and effectively so that the entire treatment team is aware of the entire treatment history. The solution to be created, which is also a candidate for the Accelerate Estonia program, will ensure that no patients disappear during the treatment journey and the treatment team can offer their best assistance,” said Uudam.