Lakes develops eMental health and addiction framework

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Picture:  The framework uses a quadrant model that reflects the stages a person usually goes through during their recovery

eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth

Lakes DHB has worked with HealthTRx to develop an eMental health and addiction framework and set up an eMental health collective to drive local adoption.

The framework was published in March 2019 and identifies a number of priorities, including building a resource portal and promoting free tools already available in this space.

Consultation with stakeholders when developing the framework identified a gap in early intervention due to eligibility criteria for services as well as cultural issues, particularly in engaging Māori men.

An eMental health collective has been established to raise awareness of eMental health and encourage more people to consider how they could engage and use digital tools to help and support people with their mental wellbeing.

Lakes DHB funding specialist Ben Hingston says the collective is made up of service providers across health and social sectors that focus on wellbeing and early intervention, including kaupapa Māori services, and the chair is a consumer.

He says when providers were surveyed on why they do not use eMental health and addiction tools in their day-to-day work, half said they felt their workforce didn’t have the capacity and capability to use digital tools.

In response, the collective is developing a ‘train the trainer’ programme with 6–10 members to be trained in both general and applied skills to incorporate eMental health tools into their services.

These people will become champions in their organisations and then train others, he says.

Tools they will be trained on include online depression services The Lowdown and The Journal, as well as Clearhead and Positively Pregnant.

The programme is being designed by HealthTRx and is due to begin this May or June.

Consumer Advisor and collective member Jordy Bealing says it is important to have as many options available as possible to support people through recovery and eMental health tools are easily accessible and often free to use.

“I still use eMental health to support me with my wellbeing,” she says.

“It’s great to be able to give that personal perspective on what interventions people would find helpful because there are so many people out there who can’t access traditional services.”

Hingston says eMental health tools can improve access for rural communities and those without face-to-face services, as well as enhance in-person services.

While the DHB funds the project, it is community driven, he explains.

The framework says that “understanding and embracing the opportunities offered by eMental health and addiction solutions to enhance existing approaches puts Lakes DHB in a strong position to meet the increasing demand for services, at a time when traditional methods are being stretched to their limits”.

If you would like to provide feedback on this news story, please contact the editor Rebecca McBeth.

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