We Care

Mobile App and online training and support for early identification and intervention for depression by frontline health workers. 

According to World Health Organization (WHO) Depression is the leading cause of disability and a major contributor for suicide (WHO 2017). More than 300 million people suffered from depression in 2015. However, fewer than 10% people in most of the least developed countries receive the minimum required treatment. Bangladesh is a developing country where about 19.2 million people are suffering from depression. However, the country has less than 200 psychiatrists and less than 50 certified clinical psychologists to serve these large populations with depression. At this moment, a psychiatrist is supposed to serve 100,000 depressed patients. Moreover, more than 90% of these mental health professionals reside in the capital city Dhaka (Soron, 2016) leaving most of the people in remote area without any sort of mental health care for their depression. This tragic scenario is common in most of the other Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs). To combat the long standing and wide spread problem, we present our solution “We Care” a multilayer and multifaceted a holistic care for management of depression using low cost technology and involving the frontline health workers. 

In this solution, we blended the community participation, experts’ guideline and involvement of frontline line health workers through technology. Through the regular SMS with a link that gives details information to the frontline health workers about the depression to promote discussion in the community and its acceptance.  Our online interactive  platform gives training the frontline health workers and volunteers about the depression, its symptoms and negative consequences. These trained frontline health worker and volunteers convey these information with the people of different level of the community and disseminate the information and share our website link and resources for further understanding. Our Bangla Depression Assessment app allow them screening and severity assessment with appropriate referral guideline or provide low intensity psychotherapy.  Moreover, we also develop a machine learning algorithms to check so that people of all strata can check their emotional state and chance of suffering from depression.

If the person appeared suffering from severe depression they will be refer to the doctor of the local health complex who will also get advice from the expert psychiatrists connected in the system. Those are suffering from mild to moderate depression the volunteer will provide the individual cognitive behavior therapy and other non-pharmacological interventions. A closed Facebook groups for the front line health workers to remain connected with experts and with other fellow members of the community who are suffering from depression and share the experience and receive the guideline. Each volunteers take care of 50 family in their community and for their service each family gives 1 USD to the volunteers for their support.

We bridge the wide gap between need for mental health care and available resources. The Bangla Depression Assessment is the first mental health mobile application in Bangladesh to help the frontline health workers. Moreover, connecting patients, frontline health workers and experts using social media has been initiated however, using them for depression with their involvement yet to be tested in the low resource settings in Bangladesh. The using artificial intelligence for detection of emotional state and feedback in Bangla is unique.

We Care Project is innovative in that it up lifts the skill of frontline health workers those who are equipped with smart phone and internet browsing. We promote the participation and discussion about depression by customized SMS with links to details information. The Bangla Depression Assessment App is the first mental health mobile application in Bangladesh to help the frontline health workers and make appropriate referral. Moreover, connecting patients, frontline health workers and experts using online platform (social media) is new in this region. The using artificial intelligence for detection of emotional state and feedback in Bengali is unique.

Our aims over to improve the access to mental health care for 5 upozilla (sub-district) in two southern districts in Bangladesh where virtually no mental health support is available and we will serve 100000 people and train at least 1000 Frontline health workers. Demonstrate the technological and clinical feasibility of the program by RCT in the last six month.

Like many other countries depression and other mental health conditions are stigmatized our solution promote the discussion about this problem and will increase its acceptance as the knowledge disseminate over time. Early identification of depression will increase early intervention and it will reduce functional impairment and suicide. We aim to train 50,000 people within next five years and expand the program to 50 district of the country with a target to serve 100 million people in Bangladesh and will expand it to other resource (trained mental health professionals, mental health hospitals) poor countries.

We will distribute the leaflets and posters in the communities and arrange a campaigning through different schools. Regular Facebook Campaigning and YouTube Promotional vedio about our program.

Our Front line Health Workers (FHW) visit them regularly and they are able to get access to the information from our websites. The voltmeters will arrange the workshop for the community. We also have the support to from the different ministries. 

So far we have served more than 100 depressed patients. Three research projects are using our Bangla Depression Assessment App. 

We want to reach the number of the app user to 1000 by the end of this year As it is a health professionals rated app we believe they will use the app at least 20 times a day as a result a part of our solution will serve  20000 people daily. Most of the front line health workers didnot have any validated and easily applicable tool in Bangla to access depression. Moreover, we aim to involve 500 Frontline health worker to train and provide intervention to the patients.

In our team we a have experts of mental health and computer sicience. Our team has successfully developed more than 5 technology based mental health programs in this region. We have support form the government of Bangladesh and a number of universities.

We take a monthly charge based on the use of the app from the clinicians.

We also collect monthly registration charge from the community perticipants.

Solve can help us in developing the system more efficently, it can bring a more media coverage and funding. Moreover, we want to scale up our service in different countries where MIT Solve can help us in developing the collaboration.