Abstract :-

Non-communicable diseases are increasing dramatically globally. Depression, considered a common non-communicable disease, affects 300 million people worldwide and is one of the reasons for the increase in suicide rates.  Although records indicate that one out of eight people suffer from mental illness in Sri Lanka, only 40% are noted to be receiving treatment. Some reasons for this could be cultural and behavioural patterns of Sri Lankan people and also the non-availability of resources.  There is a general lack of awareness in Sri Lanka for patients with depression and their family members. It is difficult for employed individuals who care for patients diagnosed with depression to find a trusted caregiver, monitor the patient and obtain required information on depression. This situation is exacerbated as Sri Lanka’s care industry is not yet fully developed, in comparison with developed countries.   This research – “Depression Care” focuses on addressing some aspects of this problem by assisting in locating caregivers for employed individuals and also monitoring the person with depression when employees are at work. Research indicates that depression could also result from loneliness. The recommended solution, “Depression Care” also offers a Chatbot as one of the means of addressing this problem.  Quantitative and qualitative research was conducted for this paper and the recommended solution was developed as a mobile application using Flutter framework and Dart language. “Depression Care” is useful for working individuals, especially in urban areas, who also care for patients suffering from depression, and places importance on identifying suitable caregivers and monitoring such patients.

Keywords—Depression, working people, Employees, Depression patient, Caregiver, Trusted, Non-Communicable Disease