Meeting of representatives of organizations participating in the JA PRISM project in Bilbao, Spain / Photo by the organizers
In September 2025, a team of scientists from the Vilnius University (VU) Faculty of Medicine (FM), Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences began implementing the European Union-funded project “Joint Action in Prevention oriented Rights-based approach to Support Mental health in vulnerable population groups” – JA PRISM.
The aim of the project is to reduce the burden of mental ill health, with a specific focus on vulnerable groups in society. During the JA PRISM project, 17 European Union countries will implement three tested and scientifically based prevention practices:
- BIZI – suicide prevention program;
- Circle of Friends – loneliness reduction program for older people;
- Act, Belong, Commit – fostering emotional well-being of children and young people.
These programs are intended for various vulnerable groups: children and adolescents, older people, migrants, people with addictions, and people with mental illnesses.
“In today’s world, good mental health is not a luxury, but a necessity. Every person deserves support, dignity, and the opportunity to feel well – regardless of their life circumstances. By caring for the vulnerable, we strengthen the entire community,” says project manager Dr Jelena Stanislavovienė.
A total of 59 organizations from 20 European Union countries participates in the project. In Lithuania, the project will be implemented by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania, the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (LSMU), and the Institute of Hygiene, together with scientists from the VU Faculty of Medicine. The role of the VU Faculty of Medicine in this project is to assess the effectiveness of the implemented practices.
In this project, Vilnius University is represented by scientists from the Department of Public Health of the Institute of Health Sciences of the Faculty of Medicine of the VU: Prof. Liubovė Murauskienė, Asst. Dr Justina Račaitė, Asst. Dr Jelena Stanislavovienė (project manager). The project is coordinated by Asta Dikevičienė.
At the first meeting of the project partners held in September 2025, Dr J. Račaitė, who represented the VU team, was pleased that new preventive measures based on human rights principles will appear in Lithuania, developed in cooperation with the international project team, consisting of scientists, experts in their fields and practitioners. It is expected that the successful implementation of this project in Lithuania will help improve the mental health of particularly vulnerable population groups.
Representatives of Lithuanian partner organizations participating in the project (from left): Rimantas Misevičius, Chief Specialist of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania, LSMU researcher Dr Jolanta Žilinskienė, VU FM researcher Dr Justina Račaitė / Photo from personal archive
Project number: 101233316.
Start of the project: September 1, 2025.
End of the project: August 31, 2028.
Project funding: €6 million from the European Union's health program "EU4Health", coordinated by "Biosistemak" (Bilbao, Spain).
Project LinkedIn page: PRISM Mental Health Joint Action | LinkedIn.
Project Facebook page: PRISM Mental Health Joint Action.
