Delhi AIIMS develops 2 mobile apps for patients with anxiety and depression

New Delhi: The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi has created two mobile apps for patients with chronic mental illnesses and their caregivers. There has been an increase in the number of cases where people are struggling with various mental health issues such as anxiety and depression, especially when the whole world is under the influence of the pandemic.Also Read – AIIMS nurses union to go on indefinite strike from October 25 over pending demands

The apps developed by AIIMS were named Shaksham and Disha respectively. The apps have been designed to treat serious mental illnesses in patients with chronic mental illnesses and also for those who have had the first episodes of such symptoms. Read also – Is a booster injection necessary after 2 doses of the COVID vaccine? Here’s what AIIMS chief Randeep Guleria has to say

Mamta Sood, a senior psychiatrist at AIIMS, told IANS news agency: “We have developed two mobile apps – Shaksham and Disha – to deal with mental illness.” Also Read – Third Wave of Corona in India: ‘Avoid going out of your home unless absolutely necessary,’ AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria says as festive season approaches

She further added that the Shaksham app is for people with chronic mental illness, while the other Disha app will benefit people who experience the first episode of such symptoms.

Both apps were developed in collaboration with the Computer Science Departments of Indraprastha Institute of Technology, Delhi, and the University of Warwick, UK. The project was funded by the National Institute of Health Research, UK. “The apps will be available for free public use from January next year. We are more concerned about patient data for use in the apps and once data restoration is secure we will launch it by January next year,” added Sood.

“The apps will also send a reminder to caregivers for medications and other patient needs,” she added. Asked about the mental issues faced by people during the ongoing pandemic, Sood said research by AIIMS conducted on healthcare workers found that 50% of healthcare workers face symptoms such as anxiety, depression and stress.

However, she added that having such symptoms and having the disease are different, as the symptoms do not affect patients, while the disease affects everyone.

(With contributions from IANS)