Česky
Professor Ján Praško has been working in psychiatry and psychotherapy for forty years. With enthusiasm, curiosity and deep thinking, as he says. Last year he was involved in the development of the first Czech psychotherapy platform Mindwell and finishing the new
Mental Rehabilitation Centre at the Beroun Rehabilitation Hospital.
The new team. Ján Praško is building a team of medical professionals for the Mental Rehabilitation Centre. "We are approaching them with the idea that we are offering something with a great human touch and more developed than what they have known so far," says the head. | photo: Anna Boháčová, MAFRA
"Last year was a transitional year for me. Things are changing. It's a nice time and a bit tiring," says the head of the mental rehabilitation centre being completed at the Beroun hospital.
What comes to mind a few years from now when someone asks you about 2022? What made it special for you?
The amount of work. The Mindwell digital platform for patients with mild and moderate mental disorders, which we started working on before covid, has advanced significantly. I also joined AKESO Holding (the parent company of the Rehabilitation Hospital Beroun - ed.) and stopped working at the clinic in Olomouc after a number of years. I was sorry to leave the patients I had managed. But it was time to continue elsewhere. I still conduct some individual therapies, but I have much fewer patients, because we are preparing for something new in Beroun - the opening of the Mental Rehabilitation Centre.
When will you accept the first patients?
We expect the centre to start initial operations in June or July 2023. The whole building will be smart - with state-of-the-art technology. Patients will have chip cards that will give them access to their room, but also to psychotherapy, rehabilitation and other areas. The whole building will have so-called circadian lighting - during the day it will copy the intensity of natural light. At night, it will have filtered blue light, which reduces melatonin levels (a hormone important for the correct circadian rhythm of the organs, sleep and wakefulness - ed.) and is linked to insomnia. A patient who wakes up at night to go to the toilet will be surrounded only by yellow light. He will see, but the light will not disturb his circadian rhythms.
Have you tried circadian lighting anywhere else?
We were the first in the country to use bright light therapy back in 1984. Back then, we only had a lamp with a strong full-spectrum light. We used it to treat depressive conditions. The whole circadian enriched house we are completing here in Beroun will be the first in the Czech Republic and Europe.
What will be its capacity?
In the end, more than 200 beds. We'll open it in stages. First it will be 80 to 90 beds. Patients will be mostly in double rooms. We're working with the designers to fine-tune the interior furnishings, including the colors. So that the rooms, therapy rooms, clubhouses and common areas are not only functional but also aesthetic and people feel comfortable and safe in them.
Even without bars...
Yes. They're only in the oldest psychiatric facilities today. Even in closed wards, there's shatterproof glass to prevent the patient from hurting himself. The Beroun Mental Rehabilitation Centre will have plenty of space. A person who struggles in small spaces will be able to breathe freely, relax and calm down.
What is your task before the centre is operational?
So far I have been able to participate in the plans for the creation of the wards and the different floors of the building. My task is also to prepare the treatment programmes for the individual wards. We are now recruiting medical staff. We're talking about our ideas and theirs, so that everything is aligned. We'll start training them in the spring. In the end we will have 180 to 200 people. We need 35 to 40 people in the first phase.
In the health sector, it's been difficult to find staff for a long time. What about psychiatry?
It's not easy. We are approaching suitable adepts with the idea that we are offering something that is more modern, with a great human touch and more developed than what they have been able to experience anywhere else.
What kind of care will you offer?
In addition to inpatient care, we will provide follow-up care after hospitalization. In our inpatient unit, in attendance groups, in outpatient clinics, and also with psychotherapists around the county. We're approaching them now and arranging to work together. Our aim is to create a supportive professional network for our patients. We are contacting psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, social workers, nurses and whole teams. We also regularly invite them to lectures.
So will you have a teaching programme as well?
First of all, we will address care. For some diagnoses, we will provide it for patients from all over the country. Especially for those with obsessive-compulsive disorder or borderline personality disorder. The care for them is currently inadequate. We are also working to establish a research organisation, as research significantly improves the quality of care and brings important competency development for staff.
Mental health e-programmes
You are co-author of the first Czech psychotherapy platform Mindwell. Who is it for?
For patients with mild to moderate mental disorders. Anyone who needs it can subscribe to it. The interested person chooses a programme according to globally validated questionnaires designed for his/her problems. Each programme includes educational animations, texts and examples as well as educational quizzes. These are followed by exercises in which the client solves their own problems. He completes the module and submits it. The e-therapist gives him feedback. He discusses with him what he has done well and recommends what to work on. The health programmes are aimed at people with depression, anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social phobia and a range of other mental health problems. Non-health programs focus on stress, burnout, relationship and communication problems, and personal growth.
Do you have your first users yet?
So far we have the first 18 clients enrolled in a trial run. We're figuring out what still needs to be tweaked. For example, whether the programs are too difficult or if clients understand the questions.
When will the platform go live for the public? Will patients pay user fees?
We expect to launch the platform soon. Yes, there will be a cost. We have to pay for the experts who will act as e-therapists, the software and other essentials. AKESO Holding invested CZK 30 million in the platform the previous year.
How effective can Mindwell be?
For mild and moderate disorders, Mindwell should be as effective as face-to-face therapy. Patients are also introduced to Mindwell at our centre. After going home, they will continue to work with him and continue outpatient therapies.
What's coming up in 2023?
A major moment will be the opening of the Mental Rehabilitation Center. But the main thing will be to align the new team. So that not only the patients but also our staff are satisfied in the centre. So we have to do two major things. We need to fine-tune the programs to fit the patients. And keep the boundaries that are not crossed so that the programs work as they should. And also to create a welcoming atmosphere for health care workers so that they can spread safety, well-being around them and patients can naturally like them.
Ján Praško Pavlov
- He is a leading Czech psychiatrist and psychotherapist. In the previous year, he became the head of the completed Mental Rehabilitation Centre at the Beroun Rehabilitation Hospital.
- In 2008-2018 he was the head of the Department of Psychiatry at the Medical Faculty of the University of Olomouc and the Olomouc University Hospital. Since 2018 he has been the Head of the Department of Psychotherapy at the Institute for Postgraduate Education in Health Care in Prague.
- He is the chairman of the Czech Psychotherapy Society. He is engaged in psychotherapeutic work, training of medical doctors, psychologists and postgraduate teaching of psychotherapy and psychopharmacology.
- He conducts systematic training in cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy and supervision in five European countries. He is the author of more than 650 scientific articles and 80 monographs on psychiatry and psychotherapy.
- In his spare time he enjoys running, skiing and sailing. He is interested in theatre, literature and film. In his youth he became Czech national champion in judo.
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