What is the money used for?
Psychological problems continue to be a taboo topic in our society and those who suffer from such problems are often confronted with prejudices and ostracism. Studies have demonstrated that at least one fourth of the general population will develop a psychological condition during their lifetime (mostly depression and anxiety). That means, one in every four people you know will be in need of psychological help at some point. Although some of these disorders are well understood and effective treatments for them are available, for other disorders, the work has just begun. The main goal of our research program in Hamburg is the development of low intensity intervention strategies – the majority of which are freely available in the form of self-help materials (books and online programs; please click the menu buttons above for more information). In addition, we have created metacognitive training programs for different disorders, which we offer largely for free to our colleagues (for more information see here). However, facilitation of the international distribution and accessibility of these materials is an enormous task, for which we need your help.
All donations go directly to our research and primarily to the translation of findings from “bench to bedside”; that is, from basic research (i.e., experimental evidence) into treatment programs (i.e., real-world application). In order to implement our programs like metacognitive training, association splitting and de-coupling, clinical control trials, which require vast amounts of monetary and personnel resources. By conducting these trials, our research group is dedicated to improving the well-being of others, and thus to “paying back” the public.
Why is research so expensive?
The backbone of our research are federal funds, for example, from the German Research Foundation or the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, which we have to apply for through a highly competitive selection process. This funding is often not sufficient to completely cover research costs. Support from private donors is thus essential to helping us remain at the forefront of psychological research. The costs for conducting a clinical study range from rather minor items like seeking ethic committee approval to the employment of research assistants who conduct therapy and perform assessments.
Once an idea has proven feasible and useful, manuals have to be written with illustrations and photos. For these manuals and MCT programs, we often use free photos (for example, from flickr.com). Still, we have to pay for some art work. A series of new, colored paintings, for example, for MCT Module 6 cost 500 EUR. Translations of materials are provided by international experts who kindly do this voluntarily. Then, students have to be paid to maintain the internet availability of the materials, including uploading continuous revisions of the materials.
The final, but perhaps most important, step is dissemination. Research findings and new developments need to be communicated and critically reviewed and discussed with colleagues at conferences to ensure credibility of findings and to improve our treatment programs. As international conferences are expensive, we rarely visit these. We are considerate with donations and federal money and thus adhere to corresponding guidelines (e.g., hotels with reduced rates, economy class for train/ flight). We also aim to publish all materials free of charge, which includes providing Open Access publication of research articles, for which fees often start at 1000 Euros.
Your donation – of any size – is essential to our work and will help to improve the lives of many individuals suffering from mental illness. If you are interested in what we are doing and would like to support us, please visit our research pages or contact us directly via contact form.
One of our employees performing Metacognitive Training (MCT)
To make a donation
Pay to: UKE AG Neuropsychologie
Bank: Hamburger Sparkasse HASPA
Reference/Reason for Payment line (this is crucial to ensure that your donation reaches us): 0470/001 (you can also indicate to which specific project you are donating, for example "0470/001 MCT")
IBAN: DE54200505501234363636
BIC/Swift: HASPDEHHXXX
You can also make a donation through the donations portal www.betterplace.org.
Or you may send a check to the following address
University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
AG Klinische Neuropsychologie
Martinistrasse 52
20246 Hamburg - Germany
We are happy to send you an official donation receipt.
Thank you
We would like to thank our supporters for their contributions. The below table listing our supporters is continuously being expanded. Have you have made a contribution but your name is not listed in the table below? Please send an email to Steffen Moritz (moritz@uke.de).
Supporter:
- Janssen-Cilag
- Family Poppinga
- From Nonnweiler (anonymous)
- S. Krämer
- E.-M. Bachmann
- G. Lippler
- From Bielefeld (anonymous)
- R. Gaber
- F. Munari
- M. Dressel
- S. Kaufmann
- G. Reidinger
- N. Vanin
- O. Griebel
- S. Scholz
- B. Bode
- From Bremen (anonymous)
- P. Schäfer
- From Hannover (anonymous)
- From Gerlingen (anonymous)
- I. Wolf
- N. Schaal
- M. Schmit
- Forensik Haina
- U. Krause
- C. Schmidt
- S. Winn
- V. Kleverbeck
- K. Bausch
- K. Hodgkiss
We would also like to express our gratitude to:
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