[ad_1]
It was on September 21 that the parents and guardians of the upper secondary classes received the message. During the autumn, Trulsegårdsskolan in Gothenburg was to launch a study in collaboration with the University of Gothenburg on how mental illness can be countered among young people.
The email urges parents who want to participate in the study to download an application from the private company Qleva AB and complete information about their children’s lifestyle.
According to the director, this is usually confidential information, related to physical and mental illnesses.
Broke the plug
But when GT contacts the researcher at the University of Gothenburg that Qleva claims to conduct the study with, he completely denies that there is one.
Nor is any such study planned.
– There is nothing planned, says researcher Robert Lowe and estimates that four months have passed since he last had contact with company representatives.
According to Robert Lowe, the contact was broken after it was difficult for the University of Gothenburg to conduct a study in collaboration with an external company, on the terms that Qleva wanted.
– It seems that they have lost interest as it was necessary to adapt it to our scientific interests, which did not seem so interesting to Qleva. So we lost contact there, says Robert Lowe.
The Department of Applied Informatics takes seriously what is described as a bogus study on behalf of the university, which may be subject to review by the university’s attorneys.
But even though contact with the University of Gothenburg was cut off several months ago, the director of Trulsegårdsskolan on September 21 encourages parents to voluntarily participate in a study that is supposedly in collaboration with the University of Gothenburg.
– This is new information for me, director of Trulsegårdsskolan when she receives the message that there is no collaboration with the University of Gothenburg.
She says she had no contact with the university herself about the study.
– I have trusted our school doctor, says Jessica Beunis.
“I would understand that it is serious”
Åse Victorin is the CEO and owner of Qleva AB, which sells the app and other studio learning tools. She is a licensed pediatrician and has been working as a doctor at a school in Gothenburg since 2012.
Over the years, it has also been involved in the debate on the use of mobile phones by children and young people.
At the moment, Åse Victorin works part-time as a school doctor in Trulsegårdsskolan.
And he says he was involved in formulating the principal’s email that was sent to parents about the study.
– He would not have had to write like that, he could have written that we should start a health work that we want to evaluate. I wrote this so that you understand that it is serious.
But in what way is it serious to say that it is a study in collaboration with the University of Gothenburg, when there is neither study nor collaboration?
– The serious thing is our intention to make a proper evaluation, that is the serious thing, says Åse Victorin and believes that it can still be a study later, if he only manages to collect enough information from his parents, if he manages to obtain funding and if he also obtains the approval of the research ethics council of the university.
And if it doesn’t happen in Trulsegårdsskolan, she will go to another school, she explains.
And if Robert Lowe doesn’t want to do the study, he turns to another researcher.
When asked how he thinks parents react to what was presented as a university study, which was actually a private company evaluation of its own tool, Åse Victorin says:
– Little friend. I think most parents understand that this is not bad, it is just to help their children.
How much would it have cost your company to conduct this type of survey if you had not obtained it at your workplace?
– I would never do that, because the company has no money. It’s not on the map.
No coincidence
Trulsegårdsskolan has not yet been billed at any cost. According to Åse Victorin, they will also not be billed for anything later for participating in the study.
On the other hand, other schools in Gothenburg have received bills. The common denominator is that they are only the schools in which Åse Victorin himself previously worked as a school doctor or previously had the principal as their principal.
Another common denominator is the lack of written agreements, hiring documents and the like.
Skårskolan has paid SEK 43,950 including VAT. Then, based on the invoice, the school received a 50 percent discount for using Qleva’s learning tools.
The Älvegården school, where Åse Victorin previously worked as a school doctor, has paid a small amount, just under a thousand crowns, including VAT, for the company’s materials.
She doesn’t think the connection is anything spectacular:
– There are no things that happen in society by chance. It is in contact with everything. In the corporate world, that’s it. Safe in your work too. These are people you talk to and this is how it turns out.
Åse Victorin: no evil capitalist
GT has also requested documentation showing that Åse Victorin has been approved to participate in the company as an additional job to employment at the school. According to the Compulsory School Administration, there is no such decision.
But Åse Victorin says a manager earlier this week, after GT requested a decision on a possible side job, submitted an application that she would fill out to get approval for a side job.
– You want this to turn me into an evil capitalist who makes money with children. I am not. I try to help children and young people. That is my mission, says Åse Victorin and says that her company is, among other things, involved in the Generation Pep project of the Crown Princess couple.
After the email was sent in September, several parents reacted skeptically. Among other things, it was questioned whether the app was actually GDPR secure enough to handle confidential information about children’s physical and mental health. A report has also been made to the city’s whistleblowing function on allegations that Åse Victorin, through her employment and involvement with the company, is sitting in double chairs.
But after GT interviewed the director of Trulsegårdsskolan and it became clear that the University of Gothenburg has never been involved in any studies, the project has now come to a complete halt.
– We’ll just cancel, says director Jessica Beunis.
GT Examines: Governor’s Business Meeting and Skara City Hotel Party
