30.10.2024Rasita Vinay and Martina Hodel awarded KZS Seed Grants from the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences

We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Rasita Vinay (Postdoctoral Researcher) and Dr. Martina Hodel (former PhD), have both been awarded a Käthe Zingg-Schwichtenberg (KZS) Seed Grant for Junior Researchers, by the prestigious Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences. The grant supports junior researchers in research projects in biomedical ethics, for up to 18 months at a Swiss research institute. 

For Dr. Vinay, the grant will support her work in the GRACE project, which will include the following two milestones:

• Conducting user testing of the current GRACE prototype with people with early dementia and their caregivers, and
• An e-Delphi (online Delphi) of recommended guidelines for the design, development and deployment of voice assistant technologies for dementia care.

Dr. Hodel, with dual affiliations at University of Zurich, IBME, and Lucerne Psychiatry, will be leading a research project focusing on implementing clinical ethics structures at a large cantonal psychiatric health care provider. The study will 
•    scientifically accompany the development of the ethics structures using implementation science principles and thus
•    tackle the gap in evidence-based approaches to clinical ethics. 

Congratulations once again to Dr. Vinay and Dr. Hodel!