About
Drawing upon a multi-level and interdisciplinary approach merging social and technological sciences, Thematic Line 3 aims to face the major societal health challenges.
This innovative approach to health is well aligned with UN Goals 3, 5 and 10, and also with the recommendations of WHO for attaining these goals as well as PNCT agenda for Health, Clinical and Translational Research (patient-oriented interdisciplinary approach to tackle major societal health challenges such as equity in access to health care or the promotion of evidence-based decision-making processes).
Societal Health
THEMATIC LINE 3
Promoting healthier lifestyles and preventing diseases
Much of the existing data on health and work conditions tend to have an illness-based perspective that excludes citizens representations, social capital or wellbeing as relevant dimensions of health. Our goal is to produce an up-dated and integrated view of population-wide health behaviors, lifestyles, and working conditions by articulating psychosocial, sociological, and biomedical data.
Reducing the burden of chronic illnesses and improving health-related quality of life
Life expectancy in Portugal has increased and so did the number of people living with chronic diseases and disabilities. Technological solutions such as ambient assisted living, personalized self-care and automatic decision tools exist, but often these systems are not co-produced with end-users. Our aim is to develop our research and contacts with stakeholders in order to empower patients and families by providing them with tailored knowledge, capacities, digital skills, and resources that promote the self-management of diseases through customized recovery plans, taking advantage of digital tools and communication.
Protecting sexual and reproductive health & rights
Portugal has one of the lowest fertility rates in the OECD, with a declining population that threatens not just economic sustainability but also cultural and sociological dimensions. We intend to further develop and upscale the existing Lab on Social Studies on Birth (nascer.pt), in order to produce and disseminate scientific information that support public policies around sexual and reproductive health and promote a serious and comprehensive debate on ethics, representations, choices, behaviors and practices that shape it.
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Main objectives
Reducing health-related inequities
High inequalities in health are a threat to fair and ethical policies, as they exclude the more vulnerable from equal access to quality health‐related goods and services. Along with the Observatory on Inequalities (TL2) and using data science techniques, we will contribute to the production of information on health-related inequalities that expose gender, age, ethnic-racial and social class disparities in health and healthcare and allow participatory approaches in health service and policy development, planning and delivery.
Promoting the effectiveness of health systems and services
Our aim is to integrate a technological approach (data integration, data analytics, text mining, machine learning) with process management and organizational practices in more patient-centred health services, where adaptability and cooperation are core competences.