eMHIC Webinar: eMental Health App Accreditation Framework for Canada

About the Webinar: 

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that e-mental health can be one of the solutions to ensure Canadians are receiving timely, equitable, cost-effective, recovery-oriented, stigma free, and quality care. The development and delivery of new virtual mental health care services and resources continues to be at the forefront of efforts by governments and health care providers. However, attention must be paid to the quality of the mental health advice Canadians are receiving. While e-mental health platforms, can play a vital role in mental health treatment, they also create a fresh set of challenges around access, regulation, certification, credibility, and accountability.

This webinar discusses a newly designed Assessment Framework for Mental Health Apps that establishes standards for mental health apps at a national level. With app use and development on the rise during the pandemic, it was recognized that more specificity and coordination was needed around apps designed for mental health care needs.

Collaborating with over 200 stakeholders with an array of perspectives (lived/living experience, providers, app developers/designers, policy makers, researchers, health executives) from across Canada, the framework spans six domains: (i) data and privacy (ii) clinical evidence (iii) clinical safety (iv) usability and accessibility (v) security and technical stability and (vi) cultural safety, social responsibility, and equity.