[Warsaw, 10.10.2022] Tech To The Rescue, a global platform matching tech companies and non-profit organizations to develop pro bono tech solutions, has facilitated a collaboration between 10Clouds and the European Alliance Against Depression (EAAD). The result of the project is a multilingual iFightDepression® site where people suffering from depression can find their guides.
iFightDepression® is an initiative of the European Alliance Against Depression (EAAD), aimed to help people struggling with depression find guides and specialists. It is based on principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of therapy which has been proven to be effective in treating depression.
The tool is dedicated to helping individuals experiencing mild to moderate depression to self-manage their depression symptoms and promote recovery with support from a trained GP or mental health professional. It consists of informative modules that focus on increasing daily activity, recognizing and challenging unhelpful thought patterns, monitoring mood, establishing healthy sleep patterns and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Associated worksheets and exercises encourage users of the tool to reinforce new skills and promote their application to daily life.
The tool is free to use and is available in 19 languages, including Ukrainian.
The creation of iFightDepression was made possible through the collaboration of EAAD and 10Clouds, supported by Tech To The Rescue. 10Clouds created a multilingual landing page, allowing guides to register and to help people suffering from depression to find their guides.
The platform is expected to be used by up to 300,000 people per day.
Ukrainian version to help 30,000 refugees
An important part of the project was also the creation of a Ukrainian version of iFightDepression®. Until recently, it was difficult for people who had fled from Ukraine to receive guide-line based treatment for depression.
The Ukrainian version of the iFD tool includes an additional workshop entitled “Finding Your Inner Strength”, which aims to strengthen the resilience of those who find themselves in difficult life circumstances and crises.
WHO estimated that about 500,000 of the total 7.2 million refugees who have left Ukraine need support for mental health disorders. iFD has a chance to help at least some of them. “There will be around 30,000 people from Ukraine suffering from depression every year and hopefully many of them will benefit from using the iFD tool”, professor Ulrich Hegerl, President of EAAD, pointed out.
“The iFightDepression tool provides healthcare professionals with a free tool to support their Ukrainian patients suffering from depression. This helps people facing a disruption in their mental health treatment and new difficulties to get help in their language in a new country,” added Piotr Toczyski, EAAD board member.
“Providing digital mental health care can be difficult and involve significant costs. That’s why the nonprofit sector has a major role to play in democratizing mental health care and reducing stigma around the world. As Tech To The Rescue, we want to empower changemakers with the technology they need to amplify their impact,” adds Jacek Siadkowski, CEO and co-founder of Tech To The Rescue.
700 interviews to help deal with trauma
Another project supported by Tech To The Rescue that addresses mental health is the Life Experience Library, an initiative of The Human Aspect Foundation and Espeo Software. The Life Experience Library is an interactive platform that allows users to search for interviews based on their experiences, exploring hundreds of stories and lessons shared by individuals who have gone through a similar struggle.
The goal of the project was to bridge the mental health gap between professional services and everyday people, and to ensure that no one is left alone when facing a challenge in life.
The library contains more than 700 in-depth interviews with people who share their experiences to inspire others to take positive action in their lives. The interviews range in length from 30 to 70 minutes and are referred to as therapeutic tools. The interviews address all topics, but many relate to refugees, war trauma, and a moving context that is particularly relevant to current refugees. The Human Aspect Library has already helped 450 000 users from 190 countries.
“We are digitizing person-to-person support by empowering thousands of people to share their own life experiences and become ‘experts’ in their narrow field. Our library will enable one person’s story to inspire millions,” says Jimmy Westerheim, founder of The Human Aspect.
Both projects embody Tech To The Rescue’s mission, which is to provide free technology resources to non-profit organizations. Founded in 2020, the organization has since supported more than 160 high-impact projects, connecting the worlds of technology and non-profits. The foundation launched the #TechForUkraine campaign at the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war and has successfully supported over 100 projects aimed at alleviating the suffering of 2 million Ukrainian refugees, in collaboration with a group of 15 Google.org Fellows who joined the foundation for six months full-time, pro-bono in April 2022.
More about Tech To The Rescue
Tech To The Rescue is a global platform that matches IT companies and non-profit organizations to implement pro bono technology solutions to solve the world’s most pressing problems. In 2022, Tech To The Rescue has found vetted tech partners providing pro bono IT services to over 160 projects submitted by nonprofits.
At the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war The foundation launched the #TechForUkraine campaign and joined forces with a group of 15 Google.org Fellows who joined the foundation for six months full-time, pro-bono in April 2022 and built close partnerships with leading tech organizations and nonprofits to successfully support over 100 projects aimed at alleviating the suffering of 2 million Ukrainian refugees.
Examples of #TechForUkraine projects include saving Ukraine’s online cultural heritage, supporting organizations that evacuate civilians from war zones, providing medical aid, rescuing animals, addressing domestic violence, and providing shelter and food for refugees.
https://www.techtotherescue.org/
Contact: Joanna Kocik, Communications Manager: [email protected]
More about The iFightDepression®
The iFD tool is a self-management tool based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). It is a “guided” tool, used with the support of a trained guiding health professional such as a general practitioner, psychiatrist, or psychological psychotherapist. It helps to tackle depression by helping the patient recognise and challenge less helpful patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving. By using the tool, the patient will learn the skills needed to prevent depression symptoms from coming back.
https://ifightdepression.com/en/
More about The Human Aspect Library
The Human Aspect Foundation (THA) works to redefine mental health through increasing psychosocial knowledge and removing its stigma. The foundation was founded in Norway in 2016 by Jimmy Westerheim after being started while he was working for Doctors Without Borders in Syria, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Greece. THA is most known for creating The Life Experience Library. The team interviews people from all over the world about their life’s toughest challenge and the lessons that they’ve learnt from them, and records them in written form for users worldwide to read. The library allows them to search for interviews based on what they may be experiencing at that time, exploring hundreds of stories and lessons shared by someone who has endured a similar struggle. It is already one of the largest free digital resources within mental health in the world.