About Davor Mucić
Brief Curriculum Vitae
Davor Mucić (DM), graduated from the Medical Faculty in Rijeka and specialized psychiatry in Denmark. In line with the special interest in the use of technology in the provision of mental health (e-Mental Health), DM founded the Little Prince Psychiatric Center in Copenhagen, where he has been developing telepsychiatry since 2000, in parallel with clinical work in various psychiatric wards in Sweden and Denmark.
DM has published a number of academic papers related to the development of telepsychiatry in Denmark, such as scientific articles on the world’s first international telepsychiatric service and the world’s first “transcultural telepsychiatric service” established in 2004. The latter service is still working, linking the psychiatric ward at Rønne Hospital, on the island of Bornholm, and the Little Prince Treatment Center in Copenhagen. Accordingly, it represents the longest telepsychiatric service in Europe.
In addition to scientific articles related to telepsychiatry, DM described a number of e-mental health applications and services in edited book ”e-Mental Health”, published by Springer in 2016.
In 2011 DM launched Telemental Health Section (i.e. current e-Mental Health section) within EPA (European Psychiatric Association).
In 2015 DM re-activated the Section on Informatics within WPA (World Psychiatric Association).
In 2020. DM launched and coordinated an “e-Mental Health Expert Group” within the WPA to help the WPA and member societies address the mental health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, DM initiated and is the lead author of the WPA`s “Telepsychiatry Global Guidelines”, published in 2021.
For his above-mentioned contribution, DM was awarded as a WPA Honorary Member 2020.
DM is currently Editor-in-Chief on Edorium Journal of Psychiatry and Editorial Advisory Board Member of Journal of Pakistan Psychiatric Society.
Further, DM is reviewer for the Journal of telemedicine and Telecare and the Egyptian Journal of Psychiatry.
DM defended the first telepsychiatry related doctoral dissertation in the EU, entitled “Telepsychiatry in assessment and/or treatment of refugees and migrants”, at the University of Silesia in Katowice (Poland), in May 2022.
Areas of Research
- Telepsychiatry development through several projects established in Denmark since 2002. Projects were founded by the Ministry of Interior and Health, Egmont Foundation, The Health Foundation, The Ministry of Social Affairs and Integration of Denmark respectively.
- 2009-2014. Member of the Expert Group within development of Danish “Tele-tolkning Projekt” (the use of interpreters in health care system via videoconference)
- 2014-2015. Member of the Expert Group within Danish project “Organisation of the Treatment of Non- Psychotic Conditions Via Use of Internet” (“Organisering af behandling til ikke-psykotiske lidelser med inddragelse af internetbehandling”, by KORA)
- 2015-2016. Member of the Expert Group within EPA (European Psychiatry Association), developing Guidance on the Quality of e-Mental Health Interventions in the Treatment of Psychotic Disorders.
- 2016-17. Member of the “expert group” within EPA, developing Guidance of e-Mental Health Interventions in the Treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- 2020-21. Initiator and leader of the “e-Mental Health Expert group” within the WPA, where he developed the “Telepsychiatry Global Guidelines” and held the first online training (CME) course for telepsychiatry
Achievements and Skills
Achievements
- DM identified a culture and linguistic barriers as major obstacles for migrants to access mental healthcare in Denmark and acordingly “invented” and implemented “transcultural telepsychiatry model” via several national projects. The term covers the use of a video link between patients belonging to ethnic minorities and therapists with the same linguistic, cultural and ethnic background as the patients. Such patients who do not master the language of the host country are most often treated by the use of interpreters, due to the lack of bilingual therapists. The use of transcultural telepsychiatry eliminates the use of interpreters in the assesment and/or treatment of ethnic minorities i.e. asylum seekers, refugees and immigrants. Consequently, treatment time is shortened, patient satisfaction is improved and costs are significantly reduced. Improved quality of care is a natural “side effect”.
- As bilingual therapists were readily available in Sweden, DM established the first international telepsychiatry service in the world in 2005, as part of the development of the transcultural telepsychiatry model in Denmark. In this way, bilingual therapists located in Sweden assessed and treated patients located in Denmark.
- Among other launched and developed telepsychiatry applications, it is worth mentioning the “Telepsychiatry Shared-care” model in outskirts of Denmark and the use of telepsychiatry to assess the work ability of unemployed migrants, but also Danish citizens.
- DM participated in the establishment and implementation of telepsychiatry in the region of Zealand (Denmark) in the period November 2019-June 2020.
Special skills
- Verbal communication skills developed and improved throughout a number of international presentations and lectures to both students and colleagues academics within the field of mental health.
- Leadership skills developed through the role of director at Little Prince Psychiatric Center, as well as a number of senior positions in psychiatric wards primarily in Sweden.
- Organizational skills developed through several national telepsychiatry projects in Denmark.
- DM has administered the grants related to the above telepsychiatry projects
- Creativity skills and artistic talents expressed through songwriting and playing several instruments were crowned with a CD recorded in period 2000-2004. The CD entitled “Little Prince” was part of a humanitarian project initiated to support the education of orphans, victims of the war in the former Yugoslavia. The project, which involved more than 100 artists from around the world, was funded by the Little Prince Psychiatric Center.
- DM is currently working as a co-author on a drama with former Hollywood and current Croatian star Ksenia Prohaska.
