Digital Mental Health Musings

In the series finale of Digital Mental Health Musings, guest host Kate Hatchman takes listeners on a journey through the conversations that shaped the past year. From innovative digital tools for young people to culturally safe care for First Nations clients, the episode weaves together powerful insights and personal stories from clinicians across Australia. 

Whether you're an experienced clinician or new to digital mental health, this episode is packed with actionable advice and compelling stories. Tune in as we reflect on 2024 and look ahead to more transformative conversations in the year to come.

Check out some of the resources discussed in this episode:

WellMob: https://wellmob.org.au/

Mello: https://www.mello.org.au/

Momentum: https://www.momentumhub.org.au/

Catch up on past episodes of Digital Mental Health Musings: https://www.emhprac.org.au/resources/digital-mental-health-musings/

“Clinicians out there are in need of tools they can use like this to really bridge that gap between what they talk about with young people in sessions and what they would like them to do in everyday life.”

In this episode of Digital Mental Health Musings, we dive into the pervasive issue of stuck thinking, or rumination, in children and adolescents - those persistent, often debilitating thought patterns that trap young minds in a cycle of anxiety and depression. 

Joined by Dr Imogen Bell, senior research fellow and psychologist at Orygen Digital, who led the development of Mello, we explore the groundbreaking tool designed to help young people disrupt these harmful thought loops - in real time, as they happen.

Check out some of the resources discussed in this episode:

Mello: https://www.mello.org.au/

What science has shown can help young people with anxiety and depression: https://wellcome.org/reports/what-science-has-shown-can-help-young-people-anxiety-and-depression

A Personalized, Transdiagnostic Smartphone Intervention (Mello) Targeting Repetitive Negative Thinking in Young People with Depression and Anxiety: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial: https://www.jmir.org/2023/1/e47860/

A Qualitative Analysis of Young People’s Experiences of Mello: A Personalised, Transdiagnostic Smartphone App Targeting Repetitive Negative Thinking for Depression and Anxiety: https://bit.ly/40hXRFz

Sleep Ninja: https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/resources-support/digital-tools-apps/sleep-ninja/

“I think really it’s just another tool in your suite of tools you can use as a clinician.”

General Practitioner Dr Bianca Cannon shares her journey using digital mental health with clients and what happens when we challenge the fears we might have around incorporating digital tools into practice.

In this episode Dr Cannon talks about the techniques and skills that health professionals already have to help their clients get the greatest benefit from digital mental health. We discuss the role that motivational interviewing plays when it comes to selecting the right candidates for digital mental health interventions and Dr Cannon steps us through exactly how she incorporates programs like THIS WAY UP into her practice using a blended care model approach.

Check out some of the resources discussed in this episode:

THIS WAY UP: https://thiswayup.org.au/

Bedtime Window: https://www.bedtimewindow.com/

“Young people wanted something to grab them, and not something to make them think that this was a magic treatment program that was going to make everything better strait away. They wanted it to say momentum moving forward.”

Have you ever wondered what your young child or adolescent clients image their mental health care to look and feel like? Now an innovative new digital mental health platform developed by leading Australian mental health experts and co-designed with hundreds of young people, has brought to life that vision of personalised digital care for young people. Momentum is a mental health digital hub that can help young people aged 7 to 17 learn new ways to manage depression, anxiety and common associated difficulties.

In this episode we unpack the evidence behind the program with project lead Professor Sonja March. We delve into it’s key features and how they work from children and teens, and the different ways that health professionals can use the platform with their young clients to get the most out of this exciting new service. 

Check out some of the resources discussed in this episode:

Momentum: https://www.momentumhub.org.au/

The Brave Program: https://brave4you.psy.uq.edu.au/

To request a free copy of the Momentum Guide for Health Professionals and/or to receive promotional material for your practice visit https://www.momentumhub.org.au/prereg_clinicians/#FAQ

“My First Nations colleagues tell be that listening is most important. Listening is really the beginning of any relationship building. But what are we listening to? What are we listening for?”

In this episode WellMob’s senior workforce development officer, Dr Mim Weber joins us to talk about her journey into allyship – what that looks like for her, how it can foster deeper connections with First Nations colleagues and clients and how WellMob’s digital tools and resources can help in your own journey.  We look at the burden of cultural load that many of our First Nations clients and colleagues carry, and how we can turn to digital resources to lighten that load. 

Check out some of the resources discussed in this episode:

How to be a good ally: https://www.emhprac.org.au/news/how-to-be-a-good-ally/

Dadirri: https://wellmob.org.au/key-resources/resources/40613/

The Australian Wars: https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/the-australian-wars

Spotlight on WellMob: Connecting digital mental health to culturally responsive healthcare: https://www.emhprac.org.au/resource/s3e4/

The Healing Foundation: https://healingfoundation.org.au/

Australian Human Rights Commission – Racism, It stops with me: https://itstopswithme.humanrights.gov.au/

Speaking Out with Larissa Behrendt: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/speakingout

Intergenerational Trauma Animation: https://wellmob.org.au/key-resources/resources/35290/

“We all like to learn that we're not the only person dealing with this. When [a client] actually hears stories of other people and how they've overcome certain situations, I think it's incredibly powerful.”

In this episode, Diane Cass, a social worker and doctoral candidate with Charles Stuart University, discusses the different ways she uses digital mental health tools and services to help her clients connect with other people’s stories and journeys through mental health challenges. She explains how she is able to help clients feel less alone and more supported with digital services and what to consider when choosing a service for your clients. 

Check out some of the resources we discussed in this episode:

Black Dog Institute: https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/

Beyond Blue: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/

Reach Out: https://au.reachout.com/

Beyond Blue online forums: https://forums.beyondblue.org.au/

Grief Australia: https://www.grief.org.au/

“It doesn’t have to be a really big intervention. Often it’s these smaller changes that make a big difference.”

In this episode, Dr Marlena Klaic, senior research fellow in implementation science at the University of Melbourne, decodes some of the common attitudes and behaviours health professionals express about digital mental health, from an implementation science lens. This conversation will give you lots of great insights into some of the barriers that you might experience yourself when it comes to using digital mental health – and the steps to overcome them. 

Check out some of the resources and papers we discussed in this episode:

Australian Psychologists Experiences with Digital Mental Health: a Qualitative Investigation, Mancini et al. 2022: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9381152/

Perceived Drivers and Barriers to the Adoption of eMental Health by Psychologists: The Construction of the Levels of Adoption of eMental Health Model. Feijt et al. 2018:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5941096/

Implementability of healthcare interventions: an overview of reviews and development of a conceptual framework. Klaic et al. 2022:

https://implementationscience.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13012-021-01171-7 

Black Dog Institute Health Professionals Education and Resource Hub: https://bit.ly/4502m81

“So, I think that was something that added, added some weight to what I was talking about. And also in the session you’re trying to cover so many things, quite often in that 50 minute session, that to give that sort of idea to go away and look at that, to consolidate some of that, or to get a bit more information, or look at it in a different way, because you don’t quite know what people do take away from the conversation that you’re having.”

In our first episode of the new season, respected child and adolescent psychologist Dr Lyn O’Grady talks about her experiences using digital mental health with clients and their families. She shares her tips on when to introduce digital tools and services, what apps to start with, how to help clients get the most out of evidence-based products in sessions and on their own between sessions, and how to be authentic about the digital tools you recommend. 

Check out some of the resources we discussed in this episode:

Smiling Mind: https://www.smilingmind.com.au/

Sleep Ninja: https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/resources-support/digital-tools-apps/sleep-ninja/

BiteBack: https://www.biteback.org.au/

The BRAVE Program: https://brave4you.psy.uq.edu.au/

ReachOut: https://au.reachout.com/

Black Dog Institute Health Professional Resource and Education Hub: https://cop.learning.blackdoginstitute.org.au/#/public-dashboard

eMHPrac Directory: https://www.emhprac.org.au/directory/

Head to Health: https://www.headtohealth.gov.au/

WellMob: https://wellmob.org.au/

In the season final of Digital Mental Health Musings, we take a look at the key moments from our conversations with the experts shaping the mental health landscape in 2023. From AI and chatbots to Australia’s ground-breaking digital mental health safety and quality standards, plus culturally responsive mental healthcare, data protection and privacy, a moderated online social community changing youth mental healthcare, the clinician attitudes and behaviours that support better client experiences with digital mental health, and more, we’ve covered a lot of ground. 

Featuring key moments, analysis and practical tips on integrating digital mental health into practice from across the season all in one place, this episode will help you keep on top of the major developments in digital mental health this year. 

We invite you to listen to the full episodes to learn more and we look forward to joining you in 2024 with more of the latest news in digital mental health. 

“I think that the website works really hard to transmit that information in a way, that encourages people with milder symptoms to give some of these digital resources a go. We know they work but not everybody's using them. They're not being used to the fullest capacity that they could be. So, I think the other side of the coin is encouraging people who have got distress but aren't in this severe group to give digital mental healthcare a go and see if it helps - because often it will.”

When Australia's national mental health navigation service, Head to Health, set themselves the challenge of making it easier for people to find and connect with the best mental health services for their needs - they listened to more than 350 Australians working and living in the mental health sector. They gathered insights and expertise to help co-design their new website in a bid to connect a fragmented mental health landscape in a way that would empower people to find and reach out for the mental health resources and services that could help them take care of their mental health and wellbeing.

In this episode of Digital Mental Health Musings Dr Tania McMahon talks to the Head to Health team about their award-winning new website – how the site works for clients and health professionals and the research and evidence behind it. We also share some great practical tips about how health professionals can use the site in their everyday practice to help support their clients. 

Check out some of the resources we discussed in this episode:
Head to Health: https://www.headtohealth.gov.au/
Read more about the new website features: https://bit.ly/3Rhz67C
Read more about Link-me: https://bit.ly/3uCysZK

Contact Head to Health and share your thoughts on the site: https://bit.ly/47snXXe