By Oliver Harrison, CEO, Alpha Health
As we head into spring and temperatures begin to (slowly!) rise, it’s important that we take stock of the months that have passed. It’s important that we do not forget the issues that winter months bring with them for those suffering from mental health problems.
The darker months of the year can be extremely challenging for our mental health. Not everyone has the luxury of a family-filled Christmas break for example. Instead, the period can intensify feelings of loneliness, isolation and sadness.
Research from Age UK shows that nearly a million elderly people feel lonelier in winter, while mental health charity Mind found that 36% of people feel too embarrassed to admit they feel lonely and don’t reach out for emotional support.
For many, the season is also synonymous with financial pressures, social anxiety and excessive quantities of unhealthy food and alcohol. Understandably, this intensifies stress levels, with one in ten people considering taking their own life. More worryingly still, one in five feel that they have nowhere to turn for support.
Keeping on top of mental health issues can be even harder in winter for vulnerable individuals. Of course, both the causes and the potential solutions are complex; there are certainly no quick fixes to depression or loneliness. However, harnessing advances in technology is one way we can help individuals, and it’s great to see this issue being increasingly debated.
Firstly, there are the simple tools. Specific smartphone apps can provide users with interventions, sending daily reminders to give a loved one a call, for instance, or arrange to meet them face to face. Less exposure to light and exercise can also result in low moods (seasonal affective disorder affects around one in fifteen people in the UK), but daily prompts from our smartphones to go for a run at lunchtime could greatly improve mental health. Where lethargy can become common in darker months, technology can empower us to make small, beneficial changes to our busy everyday schedules.
Smartphone apps can be great platforms for digitised cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) courses, given their structured formats, need for active participation, ability to self-monitor and ability to set regular tasks for the patient to complete. Insomnia, a condition that is often linked to underlying mental health problems, has been found to be treatable through the use of a CBT app.
Technology can keep us connected with friends and family too. The number of friendship apps is growing on a daily basis, enabling us to meet like-minded people, while video calling platforms such as FaceTime and Skype can support digitally face-to-face conversations with loved ones, even when meeting people in person isn’t possible.
Looking to the cutting edge, more complex technology applications, such as tracking patterns in mood using mobile apps, could also help improve mental health. These apps can analyse our behaviour and notice patterns that we may not ourselves, eventually helping with the prevention or diagnosis of mental health problems. MoodKit, for instance, draws on principles and techniques of cognitive behavioural therapy and can offer mood improvement activities and manage negative feelings against specific situations. On the other hand, 7 Cups is a US app (and website) which provides online therapy and free support to people experiencing emotional distress by connecting them with trained listeners. It has already helped more than 25 million users and is continuing to grow quickly.
Going one step further is predictive technology. Recently championed by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, predictive tech has huge potential. Take Good Thinking mental health in London for example. The project aims to identify people who might be at risk of, or are already suffering from, depression, anxiety and low-level mental health conditions by analysing social media usage and search history. The goal is to then help these people via digital apps, online cognitive behavioural therapy, or face to face, hopefully preventing conditions from worsening. This aim here is similar to the work we’re doing with one of the NHS Test Beds, trying to use predictive technology to help the NHS better support patients by knowing when they are likely to enter crisis.
Lastly, voice assistants such as Amazon’s Alexa or Google Assistant are becoming increasingly adept at speech recognition (SR). This can be an extremely valuable asset in detecting and analysing changes in emotions, particularly over a long period of time. Further, voice assistants can be a rapid link to triage and treatment, and are constantly available to patients. Although the uptake of SR continues to be slow, largely resultant of privacy concerns and error rates, voice assistants could be invaluable for the NHS, and could have a huge impact on primary care.
Technology has the capability to empower mental health sufferers to stay healthy at any time of year. Deploying simple interventive tools, mood-tracking apps and improving surroundings where possible can all have positive impacts on mood more generally. But there’s always more that can be done. The potential to predict and prevent instances of mental health through the conception and delivery of breakthrough technology is significant.
The work being done around predictive technology could fundamentally shape how the healthcare system supports those going through mental health crises. As we make our way into Spring, it’s important we reflect on the technology that can really make a difference – from simple apps up to the more complex predictive technology. Each can play a role in helping the one in six people in the UK that experience a common mental health problem each week.
About the Author
Dr. Oliver Harrison is the CEO of Alpha Health. Alpha Health is the first Moonshot launched by Telefonica Alpha, and aims to deliver breakthrough solutions to address the greatest challenges in the healthcare sector worldwide. Oliver has contributed more than 60 academic publications and presentations, and is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Future Council on Human Enhancement.
