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Non-communicable Disease Area
Epidemiology of Neurodegenerative Diseases and Mental Health Unit
Epidemiology of Neurodegenerative Diseases and Mental Health Unit
Permanent staff
- Teresa López Cuadrado
- Javier Almazán Isla
Contracted staff
- Sandra Fernández Fernández
General Information
Its main objectives are to conduct research and provide services in the fields of neurodegenerative diseases and mental health problems.
Some members of the group are affiliated with CIBERNED, Network Centre for Epidemiological Research on Neurodegenerative Diseases.
Research
Services
Epidemiological Surveillance
- Epidemiological surveillance of human transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (HTSEs) through the management and coordination of the National Registry of Human Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies, in collaboration with the Autonomous Communities. Secretariat of the Technical Working Group on Human Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies, addressing public health issues related to these diseases beyond epidemiological surveillance.
- Periodic epidemiological monitoring of mental health indicators.
- Collaboration with other units in the management of national epidemiological data, including annual mortality from communicable diseases, both notifiable and non-notifiable, and annual mortality data disaggregated by cause of death.
Health Information Analysis
- Collaboration with psychiatrists to address mental health from an epidemiological and public health perspective.
Institutional Representation
- Advisory support to the Ministry of Health on mental health matters.
- Member of the Executive Committee of the task force for the Ministry of Health's Action Plan for Suicide Prevention, under the Office of the Commissioner for Mental Health.
Scientific and Technical Advisory Activities
- Provision of expert advice to the Government and Parliament, including appearances before parliamentary committees and the preparation of requested reports on matters within the Unit's remit.
- Ongoing scientific advisory support to the Joint Programme on Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND).
- Ongoing advisory support to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) through its ad hoc expert group on prion diseases, contributing to the development of new surveillance criteria and the identification of diagnostic tests relevant to surveillance.
Training and Knowledge Dissemination
- Supervision of doctoral theses and provision of academic mentoring.
- Ongoing teaching collaboration with the Autonomous University of Madrid and the National School of Public Health.
- Information dissemination and knowledge-sharing activities.