“One of the functions of academia is to encourage people to think about how it welcomes and responds to issues in its community,” emphasised Joaquim Gago, professor at NOVA Medical School and also responsible for the Mental Health Promotion Programme in Higher Education, at the beginning of the meeting in the auditorium of the NOVA University Lisbon Rectory on Monday, 6th, during which the results of the Well-being and Mental Health at NOVA survey, promoted by the Bandua programme, were presented. This involvement, added Olga Cunha of NOVA FCSH, who has been working on the ground to put this vision into practice, ‘must be on a daily basis and consider both mental and physical aspects.’
It was with this in mind that a survey was launched among the NOVA student community to better understand the situation. According to the data now available, which included responses from 1,778 students with an average age of 24, 43% do little or no physical exercise, less than 28% say they have good quality sleep, and 65% have felt concern or panic in the last week. In addition, the data indicate that women and undergraduate students are more vulnerable. In conclusion, it is widely agreed that sleep and academic satisfaction are key factors for well-being.
In the round table discussion that followed, and given the surprise expressed by those responsible for the results regarding sleep quality, it was also emphasised that ‘it is also important not to convey a sense of catastrophe and to prepare young people to seek answers,’ as Joaquim Gago insisted, recalling the importance of repeating the survey in the future. ‘A positive attitude, purpose and connections are some of the skills that the university should promote,’ added Olga Cunha.
Bandua is a programme run by NOVA University Lisbon that promotes mental health and well-being in the academic community. Part of the National Programme for the Promotion of Mental Health in Higher Education, it is developed by the NOVA Health Platform and funded by the Directorate-General for Higher Education. As an initiative that cuts across the entire NOVA community, it aims to contribute to a healthier, more inclusive and tolerant university environment – and is managed by a team composed of representatives from all the University’s schools, as well as the Rectorate and Social Action Services.
The meeting was also attended by representatives from NOVA’s psychology services (Carolina Champalimaud – Nova SBE; Sandra Ferro – NOVA FCT; and Sandra Mateus – Social Action Services /SASNOVA) and the testimony of an undergraduate student – who shared some of the anxieties felt by her and her network of contacts, largely motivated by social media: “from the constant Tik Toks that we don’t fail to see, for fear of missing out on something, to the point of needing to have a LinkedIn account and lots of achievements to tell the world about!‘
In the end, everyone agreed that there are some important messages to pass on to them: ’Not everyone around us knows exactly what they want. They just hide it better!‘ And also: ’There are days that just don’t go well. And that’s also part of life.”