Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of flexibility when delivering mental health services. Lockdowns and uncertainty in many countries have necessitated the need to have mental health services online to support people through what has been an undeniably turbulent period.

In this keynote address, Liz Ashall-Payne (CEO, ORCHA [The Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Applications]) discusses the new era of accreditation and activation to support the digital patient. Although Liz and her organisation have been reviewing digital health applications long before the onset of Covid-19, the onset of the pandemic has surged demand for digital mental health apps, creating both new opportunities and a sense of urgency to review and regulate existing digital products.