Digital Mental-Aid Guidance
Sdot Negev Regional Council
Social
Public
Municipal
Digital transformation
Guidance application for citizens seeking and receiving psychological and mental help from the municipality in the event of an emergency. The application provides proactive information and guidance as well as treatment adjustment, planning and personal monitoring. The system enables the municipality to monitor the quality of services delivered and the efficient allocation of its resources.
” The meeting with Whiteboard exposed us to advanced, efficient and professional practices and created an innovative, human centric, solution that met the municipality and its residents’ needs. Whiteboard is a professional company, diving deep into the content, connecting with it both emotionally and mentally, and thus makes the solution. Our experience was a Whiteboard is of working with a soul actor that brings a unique added value."
The Challenge
Sdot Negev is an Israeli local municipality, with many small and scattered communities, located in a conflict zone on the border with the Gaza Strip.
As a result, its 12,000 residents live in a constant state of emergency which includes sirens, evacuating to bomb shelters and explosions. The implications for the mental health of the area's residents, from infants to seniors, are far-reaching. The formal known estimates indicate that about half of the children and residents of the area suffer from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. From interviews with residents, caregivers, educators and municipality officials, it appears that in practice there is no person who does not suffer from some form of mental disorder due to living in such a complicated state - but many do not recognize or acknowledge this fact, therefore they do not seek psychological help.
Mental and emotional support services are provided by various professional bodies subordinate to different government authorities, while the local municipality, in practice, acts as a mediator, locator, referrer, router and auditor of the services in high demand. In practice, the lack of inclusive tools for this complex process has led to inefficient utilization of resources on the one hand and harm to therapeutic processes on the other
The Project
The project included mapping the process, embarking on field research in which parents of children, students, educational staff and caregivers were interviewed in depth, as well as examining the forms from the referral and aeration process to the mental health support. Based on the results of the study, a range of information was developed to identify solutions to the future service scenario.
The Outcome
The app that accompanies residents of all ages, in situations of emotional distress in daily life and during emergencies.
The leading approach of the myPEA is that users are partners in managing their therapeutic process. It provides tools to applicants, allowing them to gain immediate effective benefit depending on their age, their ability to identify their situation (emergency or regular state) or their need for long-term treatment.
Along with providing access to instant help tools in real time, the app allows for ongoing communication. The users can submit a request for treatment, maintain contact with the caregiver and get updates.
The different steps that users go through while using the app are supported by a back office system that allows the municipality to cross-reference information between the various service providers and systems, as well as to treatments’ effectiveness and relevance. Through that, it can streamline and optimize the use of available resources.
