Mental Health Innovations

If your organisation would benefit from a training session covering wellbeing in the workplace, enquire at commissionus@mhiuk.org Or, learn more about our training offer here: https://lnkd.in/e5y-Du8j

Ahead of next week's Budget, we know many people may be experiencing overwhelming thoughts and feelings about their financial situation. People in financial difficulty often specifically seek out our Shout text-based mental health support. In 2023, we took an estimated 15,300 conversations with people experiencing financial difficulties. Of those who contact us about money worries, 50% want to talk to someone they don't know and 48% are more comfortable texting than speaking about how they feel. In a report published earlier this year on the Cost of Living, we found that 87% of people said their conversation was helpful and 65% of people felt calmer afterwards. To provide people with further support around financial wellbeing, we work with a number of organisations including the Aviva Foundation, PayPlan and IE Hub. Find out more about how we're providing people with support around financial stress here: https://lnkd.in/enhHePH4

We were delighted to be joined by key figures from government and the NHS, as well as our partners, supporters and beneficiaries  to launch our new report 'Help is just a text away: accessing and scaling mental health support through Shout's digital service' at an event marking World Mental Health Day last week at Imperial College London. The report highlights how Shout, the text support service powered by MHI, is meeting an unmet need in providing urgent mental health support to people across the UK, and comes weeks after Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham OM KBE PC FRS's independent review into the NHS, which revealed more than one million people are on waiting lists for mental health treatment. Speaking at the event, Minister for Mental Health Baroness Gillian Merron said: "The role of digital innovation is going to be an important part of the way we deliver effective care and support in the future and the government is committed in making the move from analogue to digital. Shout is a great example of a service that gives another option for support, particularly for those not in contact with a mental health service." Also attending the event was Dr Adrian James, NHS England’s Medical Director for Mental Health and Neurodiversity,  who agreed that digital solutions such as Shout are key to improving mental health outcomes. Dr James said: “Digital solutions are necessary to deliver improvements in the way in which we manage our mental health services. Shout provides opportunities to improve choice in accessible support, to provide support in a way that appeals to people, particularly children and young people, and it is a great opportunity to scale up the delivery of support for mental health.” Read the full article below.

On Wednesday, MHI's Dr Fiona Pienaar spoke at the Brain Capital Summit, alongside other inspiring speaker from diverse sectors— policy, industry, academia and community organisations. Fiona talked about the importance of digital mental health solutions for young people, including how the Shout UK service is providing young people in the UK with an accessible form of support that meets them where they are, while still providing the professional support required to help them stay safe. A big thank you to Kooth Digital Health (United Kingdom) and Brain Capital Alliance for organising this insightful event.

We were pleased to launch our joint report with IGHI last night, and so proud to see the Shout service recognised for the support it provides to people across the UK in the moment when they need it most. We heard from Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham OM KBE PC FRS, Victoria Hornby OBE, Ali Shah, Prof Adrian James & Baroness Gillian Merron. We're grateful to all our speakers for being there, and to Imperial College London for hosting the night.

A big thank you to XTX Markets for enabling us to support young across the UK.

NEW REPORT: weeks after Professor Lord Ara Darzi’s independent investigation into the NHS which revealed that there are one million people currently waiting for support, our new report shows how as a text based service, Shout UK is playing a key role in the provision of urgent and scalable digital mental health support across the UK. The report was written alongside our partner Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College. The key findings highlight three points: 🔵 Shout is accessible, available at hours of the night and early morning when other services aren't 🔵 Shout is equitable, providing support to stigmatised groups such as the LGBTQ+ community, as well as those with specific access needs, like Deaf or neurodivergent people 🔵 The service has reach and scale, having taken 2.5 million conversations with 830,000 children, young people and adults who were struggling to cope. Since the service began, Shout has developed more than 38,000 safety plans for people whose lives were at risk, and intervened with the support of emergency services on nearly 33,000 occasions Read the full report > https://lnkd.in/eiX2qCnt #WorldMentalHealthDay

We recently hosted a webinar for NHS ICB professionals to hear about the benefits of our 24/7 crisis text service for their local communities. At MHI, our vision is that everyone in the UK has access to the digital mental health services that they need and can access appropriate, high-quality support quickly and efficiently through the power of technology. Working with ICBs such as Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, our bespoke clinical model ensures individuals can reach out via text for mental health support with a Qualified Practitioner round-the-clock, without the need for a call back or long wait times to speak to someone. This is especially important during times when other support services are closed. To find out more about how this service can be integrated with ICBs to deliver 24/7 crisis support visit: https://lnkd.in/geSRnbey 

Join MHI's Dr Ariele Noble, chartered psychologist, training specialist and executive coach, for this free webinar tomorrow, covering quick wins to support your own mental health.

Yesterday at the eMental Health International Collaborative (eMHIC) conference in Ottawa, Mental Health Innovations joined our international digital textline partners from the US, Canada and Ireland to release a new report highlighting the incredible impact our combined 100,000 online crisis volunteers are having on responding to the demand for global mental health support. Resoundingly, the benefits go far beyond the platform, with volunteers developing active listening skills and empathy, the confidence and skills required to begin studying or pursue a career in mental health, and an increased understanding of how to support those around them, all of which are benefiting their wider communities too. Through our unique training model, we’re adding capacity to the mental health workforce, helping volunteers to secure and retain employment in the sector. Consider starting a volunteering journey with us today and help change the mental health landscape for yourself and others. Find out more here: https://bit.ly/47yuVLo