For many decades, the international health community has focused on physical health. According to the World Health Organization, one in four people globally will be affected by mental and neurological disorders in their lifetime. Mental health is an issue that can no longer be ignored.
The global burden of depression and anxiety is particularly shocking. In 2017, the WHO revealed that 322 million people had depression and 264 million were living with anxiety disorders. Mental health issues have enormous economic and social impacts. Despite the importance of prevention and treatment, only 1 in 27 people receive adequate care for anxiety or depression in some low- and middle-income countries, with this only rising to 1 in 5 across many high-income countries.
Digital tools are increasingly being heralded as a potential solution to the growing mental healthcare need, due to their accessibility, scalability and adaptability. What is their potential, and are they living up to it?
In this Forum, we present and discuss the latest digital tools and research being developed to help mental health disorders.
Speakers include:
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Mr Hutan Ashrafian, Scientific Advisor, Institute of Global Health Innovation
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Dr Fiona Pienaar, Chief Clinical Officer at Mental Health Innovations
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Emma Lawrance, Mental Health Innovations Fellow, Mental Health Innovations and Institute of Global Health Innovation
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Dr Lindsay Dewa, Research Associate, NIHR Patient Safety Translational Research Centre
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Sarah P. Jones, Research Postgraduate, Department of Surgery & Cancer, Faculty of Medicine