An unprecedented convergence of mental health experts from ten countries representing government, healthcare organisations, researchers, people with lived experience and product developers is taking place in Auckland, New Zealand at the 8th Annual eMental Health International Congress on 10 to 11 November 2022.
Who are these experts and what are they going to discuss?
We know that the global mental health crisis is a growing concern for all countries around the world. The World Health Organization now estimates one in eight of people around the world live with a mental health disorder.
This is why Mental Health experts from USA, Canada, England, Scotland, Sweden, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Philippines will be at this years Congress focussing what’s already working and how to scale the role of digital technologies to improve access to care and treatment in mental health to help solve the global mental health crisis.
Digital beacon of hope
The global mental health crisis is a complex problem to solve, but with the rapid uptake of digital tools, improving access to mental health care is transforming our current mental healthcare system. There is a digital beacon of hope on the horizon. Experts around the world agree that integrating digital solutions into our existing healthcare systems will make a pivotal difference in the global fight against mental illness.
From the post pandemic response data available from various countries around the world we know that the digital mental health solutions are infinitely scalable and enable promotion, prevention, screening, treatment, and social support to improve mental wellbeing and recovery.
Digitally enabled options provide consumers with more choice, additional support and access to resources when and where they need them most. 5 million people around the world are using digital health solutions every single day and the policy makers are trying to make sense of how to design delivery of mental healthcare provision to better suit the needs of the people.
Collaboration is the key
There are no easy answers and quick fixes, rather the entire mental health ecosystem stakeholders need to work together. While it is easy to say that “working in silos” is the thing of the past, unfortunately it is very much alive and well in all countries around the world.
The Congress is an opportunity for everyone and anyone working in the digital mental health domain to come together and collaborate as we all work towards solving the global mental health crisis. We can do this by co-creating a new digital mental health ecosystem that truly is consumer centric and not limited to 9am-5pm Monday to Friday care provision.
2022 Congress is the biggest digital mental health event in the world focussed solely on implementation of digital mental health solutions into mental health care pathways. It is inevitable that we will all end up working together if we are sincere about making the difference.
