Global change and rapid technological development create both new needs and new opportunities for how services are organized. In mental health, substance use and addiction services, this development—together with the establishment of the wellbeing services counties—places new demands on service provision. These relate to goals for digitalization, variations in service needs, requirements for cost control, and challenges such as long distances to services.
When developing integrated and multichannel services, the focus should be on customer orientation and a good customer experience. Equally important is ensuring quality, cost‑effectiveness, participation and equality, as well as actively preventing stigma and marginalization.
Digitalization and the increasing variety of client and patient encounters create new competence requirements. These include, for example, how to meet a person professionally and empathetically in a digital environment, how clients find and access services, and how functional ability and recovery‑orientation can be supported even in digital encounters. It also involves how remote and in‑person services are combined or phased in a purposeful way. Such competence is needed among professionals in various work environments as well as among students. The competence is central in mental health, substance use and addiction work, but also in other health and welfare fields where client contact is part of the work or studies. Volunteers and development actors also need similar skills.
Goals
The main goal of the project is to develop digital encounter competence among professionals and students in mental health, substance use and addiction work, and to produce knowledge and tools that strengthen digital customer orientation.
The specific goals are to:
- develop digital encounter competence for professionals, students, developers, volunteers and experts by experience in mental health, substance use and addiction work
- produce simulations that enable practicing digital encounter situations in education and continuing training in mental health, substance use and addiction work
- create knowledge and tools to develop and support digital customer orientation and targeted digital encounters.
Implementation
The project is carried out in cooperation between THL and LAB University of Applied Sciences.
THL is mainly responsible for mapping different use contexts of digital services and their significance and effects within mental health, substance use and addiction work.
In cooperation with LAB, knowledge and tools are produced to support digital customer orientation and digital encounter competence, as well as their development.
Funding
European Union Regional and Structural Policy Programme, South-East Finland Vitality Centre.
Partners
LAB University of Applied Sciences
Contact details
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