Newfoundland and Labrador Mental Health and Addictions App Library

At a Glance

Target Population

Search by topic, symptom, cost, assessment score & audience
Increased access to low-cost support
Make informed resource suggestions to clients

Implementation Status

Scaling implementation

Launched in June 2025 and widely used with over 10,500 page views, and 308 app downloads.

Description

The first mental health and addictions app library in Canada, providing a collection of approved apps to support people in Newfoundland and Labrador

Impact & Outcomes

June 2025 – January 2026

2,600+

Sessions

10,500+

Page views

308

App downloads

Initiative Overview

The Current Gap

Mental health and well-being apps have become extremely popular globally over the last number of years, with over 250,000 available in Canada, and millions spent on app purchases each year. However, until recently, there was no mechanism in place in Canada to ensure the quality, authentication, effectiveness, or safety of such apps.

Our Solution

The Newfoundland and Labrador Mental Health and Addictions App Library is the first of its kind in Canada. It is a collection of mental health and addictions apps that have been assessed for safety, quality, and effectiveness by the Organization for the Review of Care and Health Apps (ORCHA) in the United Kingdom and the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) to help support people in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The NL Mental Health and Addictions App Library highlights apps that have undergone the app assessment framework. Experts have judged these apps to be safe, secure, effective, and based on research. Thus, the app library takes the guessing out of which apps are safe, secure, and effective for communities. These apps are available 24/7 and provide support in a number of categories, including addictions, anxiety, mental well-being, panic attack, PTSD, stress, and suicide prevention The Digital App Assessment Framework provides a mechanism to assess mental health and well-being apps through a series of over 450 questions based on seven standards as follows: Data and privacy; Clinical evidence; Clinical safety; User-ability and accessibility; Security and technical stability; Cultural safety, social responsibility and equity; and Enhanced data sovereignty. Mental health apps are not to be used as standalone treatment but can promote positive mental health and well-being by providing tools that help manage individuals’ day-to-day living experiences and deal with various stressors as related to mental health.

Key Features

Collaboration in Action

Main Collaborators

Key Learnings

A key challenge was navigating the rapidly expanding and largely unregulated digital mental health app landscape, with no consistent Canadian framework to assess safety, quality, and effectiveness. Ensuring public trust while introducing a new, evidence-based approach required careful alignment across government, national, and international partners.
The experience highlighted that informal or limited screening processes, even when well intentioned and inclusive of lived experience and professional input, are insufficient for evaluating complex digital health applications. A rigorous, standardised assessment framework is essential to ensure clinical safety, data protection, cultural safety, accessibility, and overall effectiveness.
The development and adoption of the Digital App Assessment Framework demonstrated the value of collaboration between people with lived experience, subject matter experts, clinicians, and system leaders. Applying a structured framework of over 450 questions across seven standards created a shared, transparent approach to app assessment, strengthening trust, consistency, and quality across jurisdictions.

Looking Ahead

Future Plans

Future plans may be shared at a later stage.

Opportunities

For current opportunities, please contact Niki Legge using the details below.

Key Contact

Niki Legge

Director, Mental Health and Addictions
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

Resources & Media

Key Details

Organisation Name

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

Location

St. John’s, NL, Canada

Social Media / Contact Links

eMHIC Member Status

Strategic Partner

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