< Previous50TRACK IV - EMPOWERMENT AND AGENCYEHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORT Working and living in a new normality Organised by Young Forum Gastein COVID-19 and the associated containment measures have impacted people’s lives, including their mental and social well-being, in numerous ways and to varying degrees. This session, moderated by Nicholas Morgan, Director, Euro Youth Mental Health, convened representatives from various sectors to spotlight the mental health of young professionals during the crisis. Highlighting real-life experiences, panellists discussed the importance of rethinking work-life balance for young professionals and identified the good practice models that have emerged from employers in supporting their workforce through this turbulent time. As heard from Emmy, Expert by Experience, fear and the need for social support has increased exponentially during the pandemic. Support networks, social interaction, and stability in both the home and work environment have gained additional importance. Sara Cerdas, MEP, European Parliament, saw the current trends as overreaching, “The pandemic has opened a Pandora’s box; we need to address mental health more enthusiastically when we speak about health - it is not only about the physical or social aspects of health, but also mental health and well-being”. Supporting young professionals: using faculty and peer- to-peer Sharing his experience of first year students entering university, Paul Gelissen, Youth Taskforce Member, Mental Health Europe, acknowledged the new environment, coupled with an unfamiliar educational process requires a new skill set. COVID-19 is hindering the opportunity for students to connect with and within their institutions and this is resulting in a lack of emotional attachment. The same can also be said for young professionals beginning their careers, remote working is significantly impacting their ability to connect with colleagues. Another challenge experienced by many is the lack of structure and the difficulty this creates in managing one’s workload. He observed that students, unfortunately, have limited avenues to share and exchange their strategies for dealing with this situation. Gelissen suggested these challenges could be tackled through educational activities and peer work, such as utilising e-mental health platforms to provide online peer support, practical social support, and consequently, reduce the feelings of loneliness. The panel emphasised the importance of raising mental health awareness, and highlighted that as Emmy’s shared experience A spotlight on young professionals’ mental health during COVID-1951EHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORTTRACK IV - EMPOWERMENT AND AGENCY indicated, stigmatisation of those with mental health disorders remains an important societal problem which is prevalent in our communities. Supporting healthcare workers: the tide of burnout is rising Although healthcare has not been hit with the wide-spread redundancies seen in many sectors during the crisis, the pandemic has influenced the health workforce (HWF) in various other ways. Giving the perspective of a frontline worker, Alexandra Caulfield, Associate Researcher, Karolinska Institute, described the challenges faced in primary healthcare. She noted the rapidly evolving situation meant best practices were ever- changing and this, along with the sheer volume of patients, was physically and mentally exhausting. In addition, delivering care to patients whilst wearing the mandated personal protection equipment (PPE) placed constraints on healthcare workers’ ability to easily communicate with patients and colleagues. Finally, the constant worry about risk of personal infection, and concerns for family members at home, led many healthcare workers to self-isolate, further reducing their support network. Elaborating on this point to showcase the boarder impact of COVID-19, Caulfield emphasised the virus “is not only increasing stresses but also reducing our normal sources of support”. Panellists also brought forward the idea of “moral injury”, which describes the ethical and moral suffering that arises from experiences which strongly clash with one’s moral code, for example caregivers being unable to provide the level of care they expect from themselves. Thinking long-term, the working conditions and health status of the HWF have a strong impact on health system sustainability. With this in mind, Caulfield urged we reconsider how healthcare workers are encouraged to stay in their professions, particularly young health professionals who are often more at risk of developing mental illness when compared to their older colleagues. Taking care of your mental health As Cerdas highlighted, young people, particularly millennials, have experienced the second crisis of their adulthood. First, difficulty securing employment during the financial crisis and now, the ongoing pandemic. This has far reaching consequences, especially at a time when social interactions must be reduced or reconsidered. The exact dimensions of the cost to mental health incurred can only be estimated – and the worst may be yet to come. This session therefore aimed to provide a spectrum of solutions, discussed interactively with the audience. • Individual level The discussion offered practical, hands-on advice to care for mental health. Panellists appealed for time to disconnect, be mindful, and pursue hobbies. “We should start to take time for ourselves” was one clear message from Cerdas. • Work environment The panel called on employers and educational institutions to organise events which stimulate connections, as well as encouraging group work to replace the otherwise lacking social interactions. Gelissen pointed out that positive reinforcement by authorities can have a significant impact on both employees and students – during the pandemic, this has become perhaps more important than ever. Employers should encourage employees to structure their workdays in a way that allows disconnect from workplace responsibilities. Long-term, this prevents mental ill- health and indeed, contributes to sustainability. • Structural changes “Even if mental health is not visible, it does not mean that it is not there. Hence the need for more policies on mental health and well-being at the EU level”, stressed Cerdas. However, in order to collectively improve mental health, everyone must get involved. It is crucial how societies see, address, and support mental health in various fields and even in minor actions – and indeed, encourage people to talk about the issues to decrease the stigma around mental health. In some countries, employers have implemented reward programmes to support the health and well-being of their employees by providing recreational activities – positively impacting their mental health too. Indeed, as also this discussion shows, mental health is interconnected, and as Caulfield concluded “there is no health without mental health”. Learn more Session recording Programme52HACKATHONEHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORT Hackathon Organised by European Health Forum Gastein and EIT Health Digital solutions to support the continuity of mental health care during times of crisis Within the framework of the 2020 conference, the EHFG, in partnership with EIT Health, hosted its third annual hackathon – a time sensitive competition which brings together multidisciplinary minds to collaborate and develop solutions for health-related problems. Over the course of 40 hours, 14 teams representing 56 selected participants from 22 European countries, worked together to develop innovative and implementable digital solutions to support the continuity of mental health care during times of crisis. Participants ranged from students to experienced healthcare professionals, software developers, and everything in between. Hacking from home Instead of meeting in the picturesque Gastein valley, as is usually the case, this year’s hackathon moved to the virtual world. Communication tools such as Discord enabled participants, many of whom who had never met, to build rapport and share skill sets. Subject-matter experts provided an overview of the current state and opportunities within digital mental health. And mentors, led by Marton Kis, Health Innovation Expert, Semmelweis University, were on-hand to interact with the teams, offering continuous feedback and support to ensure that the participants’ energy was spent developing useful and practical ideas. At the end of the 40 hours, each team was required to submit a three-minute pitch presentation to highlight the problem they were attempting to solve, along with the proposed solution. The ideas put forward addressed a wide cross-section of challenges and opportunities around continuity of mental health care, including; a platform for mental health promotion and management, a tele-medical AI tool which aims to improve the continuity of mental health care by ensuring a seamless transition between individual interventions, and a virtual reality tool which seeks to increase the contact between socially isolated citizens and their family, friends, and therapists. Seven shortlisted teams were selected to proceed to the live finale where they faced questions from a panel of expert jury members, led by Jan-Philipp Beck, CEO, EIT Health. The projects were scored according to a list of predetermined criteria and after deliberation three finalist teams were chosen to present their projects during the Closing Plenary of the EHFG 2020. The final three 1. Aidemy believe breaking down mental health stigma to be a social responsibility. Their platform will train everyday citizens to become mental health first responders, enabling the individual to recognise the warning signs of mental health disorders, and provide timely psychological first aid. 2. PeerMent aim to reduce the number of mental health disorders amongst single parents by designing a platform where parents and caregivers can connect with and learn from peers with similar experiences. Allowing the parent increase self-awareness to take care of their own mental well-being. 3. Animo is a patient-driven software for individuals with severe mental health illness; using in-app voice- recording and patient-profiling functionalities it serves as a communication platform for clients, their families, and health professionals. The three shortlisted projects were put to a vote via a digital audience poll. With 74% of the public vote, Aidemy were awarded overall winners of the EHFG 2020 Hackathon and will receive prize money of €25,000 to invest into their start-up. 53CONTRIBUTING AUTHORSEHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORT Alexandra Caulfield Alexandra Tamas Alyona Mazhnaya Ann Marie Borg Anna Prokůpková Bianca Cucos Cara Pries Catarina Nobre Chloe Maher Damiano Cerasuolo Daniela Rojatz Duarte Brito Katarina Gatialová Lela Sulaberidze Lilian van der Ven Lisa Bornscheuer Louise Boyle Lucia Medori Margot Neveux Mari Pollari Mateusz Zatonski Michele Calabrò Miriam Reiss Neil Saad Péter Szegner Philip Hines Samra Mušić Simone Mohrs Suvi Karuranga Thomas Gelin Wiebke Seemann Željka Stamenković Contributing Authors 54ORGANISERS & PARTNERSEHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORT Organisers & Partners Organiser Co-organiser In collaboration with We would like to thank the following institutions, organisations and companies for their expertise, generous support, sponsorship and fruitful cooperation; which makes the European Health Forum Gastein such a successful event, and without whom we would not have been able to realise our goals. We are looking forward to continuing these partnerships on our way towards CREATING A BETTER FUTURE FOR HEALTH IN EUROPE. • Austrian Federal Ministry of Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection • Central European Cooperative Oncology (CECOG) • CHRODIS+ Joint Action on Implementing Good Practices for Chronic Disease • EIT Health (supported by the EIT, a body of the European Union) • EuroHealthNet • European Cancer Organisation • European Cancer Patient Coalition • European Commission Directorate General of Health and Food Safety • European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) • European Institute of Health and Sustainable Development • European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies • Fondation Botnar • German National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) • Gesundheit Österreich GmbH (GÖG), the Austrian National Institute for Public Health • Health Literacy Coalition • Johnson & Johnson • MSD • Norwegian Medicines Agency • Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services • Open Society Foundations • The Health Foundation • The Lancet and Financial Times Commission ‘Growing up in a digital world: Governing health futures 2030’ • Trimbos Instituut, the Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction • United European Gastroenterology (UEG) • Vital Transformation • World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe Programme partners, co-hosts and contributors European Health Forum Gastein Federal Ministry of Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection DG Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE)55ORGANISERS & PARTNERSEHFG 2020 CONFERENCE REPORT Federal State Land Salzburg Communities Bad Hofgastein and Bad Gastein Kur- & Tourismusverband Bad Hofgastein and Bad Gastein Gasteiner Tourismus GmbH Further partners Media partners acumen public affairs EurActiv Eurohealth Going International Healthy Europe Der StandardEuropean Health Forum Gastein Tauernplatz 1, 5630 Bad Hofgastein, Austria www.ehfg.org info@ehfg.org Lisa Bornscheuer, Louise Boyle, Dorli Kahr-Gottlieb, Chloe Maher, Mari Pollari, Cara Pries Floris Oudshoorn / Comic House CIRCLE Design + Direction / www.designbycircl.at Report online version 17 December 2020 Imprint Publisher Editorial team Cartoons Corporate designNext >