Maria José Lumini is a researcher at CINTESIS  – Center for Health Technology and Services Research / Nursing School of Porto (ESEP) since the beginning, integrating the group NursID – Innovation and Development in Nursing, where she has stood out for her research on informal caregivers and information and communication technologies (ICT) in education. She was born 58 years ago in Paranhos, Porto, where she grew up. She finished high school at Colégio António Nobre and was thinking of applying to study Biology at college. A friend who was studying Nursing changed her mind with her enthusiasm. She decided to follow the same path.

She was admitted to the Nursing School of São João (currently the Nursing of Porto). In December 1985, she completed her nursing studies. A month later, in January 1986, she was working at the Hospital of São João (now the University Hospital Center of São João). She worked as a nurse in an Intensive Care Unit, in Programmed Surgery, and, after specialising in Medical-Surgical Nursing, she also worked at the Cardiology Intermediate Care Unit of the same hospital.

In 2000, she was challenged to join the teaching career at ESEP, where she is currently an Assistant Professor. “It was the turning point. Teaching allows me not only to transmit knowledge to students and help them at various levels but also to have more autonomy to create, integrate projects, and investigate. Teaching continues to be a great challenge for me,” she says.

In 2006, she completed her Master’s degree in Nursing Sciences at ICBAS and, in 2016, she completed her PhD at the same institution. “Research has allowed me to innovate, create, be close to the community, with the challenge of networking,” she says.

She has been a member of CINTESIS – Center for Health Technology and Services Research since the beginning, integrating the research group NursID, under the leadership of Carlos Sequeira. “The experience I have had is quite positive. My main area of interest is informal caregivers, because of my doctorate during which I studied the role of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in this type of care.

She coordinates the team that developed the Intent-Care platform, an interactive technological tool aimed at providing information adapted to the needs of family caregivers of people in a situation of dependency, complementing the information provided by health professionals.

It is a free access platform, with educational resources and informative content in a digital environment that helps informal caregivers provide better care. The highlight is the videos that explain step by step how to perform tasks such as positioning, transferring, feeding, and managing the medication of the person in a situation of dependency.

“The platform is not a finished product. We have been creating new modules, together with master’s students. Now, in the short term, we intend to create a new module on fall prevention, including some exercises that aim to stimulate mobility, balance, and muscle strength,” she says.

To exemplify what is done at Intent-Care, Maria José Lumini participated every other week in the program “Cuidadores”, from Praça da Alegria, on RTP1. “I think it had an impact and that we were able to help the community. This is also our desire as researchers: that research has a strong impact on the community,” she says.

Another project she led, entitled “Being a caregiver in the COVID-19 pandemic: a massive open online course (MOOC) on prevention measures and self-care for the most vulnerable”, was one of the winners of the second edition of the RESEARCH 4 COVID-19 competition of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). The researcher obtained funding to develop a MOOC that aimed to empower informal caregivers and improve the care provided to their most vulnerable family members, in the home setting, to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection. The MOOC was integrated into the NAU platform in 2021.

“The reactions were very positive. Many people signed up. After the course was over, we were approached to reformulate it and launch a new edition”, she adds.

From 2013 to 2020, she was a member of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing (EIP-AHA), in a collaboration with European partners that resulted in several works, including a “booklet” to define guidelines for the development of technological solutions and a “white paper” on the role of new technologies in caregivers. “The participation in this Network was very important in my professional and even personal development”, she recognizes.

The researcher is also part of the project iGestHealth – Application for Chronic Disease Self-Management, along with Célia Santos, coordinator, and other researchers from CINTESIS/ESEP, specifically in Module 2 – iGestHealth Diabetes. The goal is to develop computer applications for monitoring and control of therapeutic regimen management in people with chronic diseases.

Another challenge, assumed within the scope of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), is the development of a MOOC for informal caregivers that aims to empower and raise the awareness of family caregivers to better care for dependent people and for themselves, maintaining their health and well-being. The researcher will also collaborate in the development of another MOOC, this one aimed at nurse care managers working in residential facilities for the elderly (IPE).

1-Year Ambition

Next year, we have to develop the two MOOCs and try to complete the projects I have underway, such as Intent-Care. We have to continue to develop new themes, such as recreation and leisure, the well being of the caregiver, among others, and consolidate the – iGestHealth, in the strand – iGestHealth Diabetes.

10-Year Ambition

In 10 years, I intend to stay in these major areas of research: the use of ICT in teaching and learning processes, family caregivers, and in particular caregivers of people in palliative care. This is an area that I want to extend.

I would also like to maintain the partnership with the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil and even implement and evaluate the Intent-CARE platform in that city.

Following on from my work from 2013 to 2020 in EIP-AHA, I would also like to be involved in IN-4-AHA – Innovation Networks for Scaling Active and Healthy Ageing.

Life Beyond Research and Teaching

I live a quiet and reserved life. In the little free time I have, I try to keep some healthy habits. I work out, I really enjoy hiking, I’m part of the ESEP choral group, I like to sing, read, watch TV shows and go to concerts.