Caregiver-Centric Innovations in Intensive Home-Treatment for Acute Mental Illness: A Comprehensive Approach

Research project description

PhD will investigate around burden of the caregivers of patients receiving Intensive home-treatment. 

Intensive home-treatment (IHT) has become one of the trendier strategies in some European countries to prevent acute hospitalization of patients suffering from an acute mental illness.

This intervention provides daily treatment at home by a multidisciplinary team for those patients until the crisis is over. In most cases, collaborative work with a family member who can supervise the patient is mandatory. However, this role can cause a burden on the caregiver and, in consequence, can lead to stress, anxiety, and other psychological and physical consequences.

Since there are no instruments to detect the burden of the caregivers of patients receiving IHT, our research group is creating a questionnaire based on the qualitative analysis of the information provided by the caregivers themselves.

Additionally, the research will extend beyond qualitative realms to incorporate demographic factors that play a crucial role in shaping the caregiver landscape, aiming at discerning patterns and variations across different family structures within our society and enriching our comprehension of caregiver needs.

The next step is creating an intervention to reduce this burden. Therefore, the objective of this PhD program is to (i) use demographic and health survey data to analyze the personal and household characteristics of caregivers who care for family members with a mental illness, ii) evaluate the caregivers’ needs using a qualitative approach, and (iii) design and perform an experimental trial to evaluate its efficacy.

This PhD program will allow the student to acquire in-depth knowledge in qualitative and quantitative statistical methods, as well as in demographic analysis, and to perform experimental designs such as clinical trials. 

Academic background / Skills

Candidates must hold a degree that allows admission to the official doctoral programme at UAB.  

Additional requirements for a stronger application are: 

• The ideal candidate for this PhD program should possess some foundation in neuroscience, psychology, or a related field.  
• They must comply with the academic requirements to access the PhD in Psychiatry of the UAB which, among others, requires a Master’s degree and a good level of speaking and writing in English.  
• Basic knowledge of Spanish/Catalan is considered an advantage.  
• Familiarity with quantitative and qualitative statistical methods and programming languages (e.g., Python, R, STATA and/or SPSS) is preferible but not mandatory, as comprehensive training will be provided.  
• The candidate should demonstrate a keen interest in psychiatric disorders and patient-centered care.  
• Strong communication and collaboration skills are essential, as the project involves interdisciplinary teamwork.  
• The candidate should exhibit a commitment to advancing mental health research and a capacity for independent, creative thinking within a collaborative research environment. 

Research group/s description

The Sant Pau Mental Health Group, part of the Institut de Recerca Sant Pau’s Neurological Diseases, Neuroscience & Mental Health division, is resolutely dedicated to the pursuit of innovative therapeutic modalities, underpinned by a comprehensive understanding of etiopathogenesis, derived from their accrued knowledge. Main scientific challenges: research that reduces the healthcare, social and personal costs of mental illness by exploring areas such as epidemiology, etiopathogenesis, physiopathology, prevention and treatment; that delve into innovative mental health therapies; and to improve quality of life of patients with mental disorders.  

The Centre d’Estudis Demogràfics (CED) Health and Ageing research group is dedicated to studying the challenges posed by population ageing to the organization of our societies and the well-being of its inhabitants. The importance is not just that people live more years, but that those extra years are lived in good mental and physical health, which must also be approached from an analysis that incorporates social and gender inequalities.