Balancing technology use is tough. Often, I override my screen limits or doomscroll instead of getting out for a walk. Tech’s rapid evolution impacts mental health, with platforms and algorithms cleverly capturing our attention by tapping into personal interests and fears. Despite these negatives, the internet has been a positive force in my life, especially when I accessed mental health support online after having a baby last year.
My experience highlights the double-edged sword of technology. While online platforms provided crucial convenience and accessibility during a challenging time for me, the fragmented landscape made it difficult to find the right support. This tension underscores a fundamental truth: for digital transformation to truly benefit those in need, it must be built on a strong foundation of human-centred design that puts real people at the heart of solutions. This needs collaboration between organisations on data and infrastructure to streamline the journey to finding support.
The struggle to find clear, reliable support online
Our Digital Youth Index shows that communications preferences are changing and about one in five young people prefer seeking advice online for sensitive matters. However, the overwhelming number of support options makes it hard to find the right help. Compare this to when you search a browser for cinema times: you can get a clear list of films showing at your nearest cinema including standardised information such as age ratings, film duration and genre. For many, it’s easier to find cinema prices or a new washing machine than to navigate online wellbeing resources. For consumers, there are services or search engine optimisations that make it easy to compare the features of different appliances or insurance. Contrast this with mental health, which is so often linked to support on other social issues such as financial advice or feelings of isolation.
We’ve found that this is because services present themselves online in different ways. From Facebook pages through to websites for public services – these are often manually updated, resulting in out of date and inconsistent information. And the language needed to understand what a service is offering to meet specific needs is often hard for someone seeking support to navigate to what’s relevant. In my case, for example, I wasn’t sure whether to search for postnatal support, advice on anxiety, or problems sleeping. The lack of standardised data and how this is presented makes it challenging for individuals to find the right fit for their needs.
The current approach of expecting individuals to navigate the fragmented landscape of mental health services is problematic. There’s a cost in badly presented or inaccurate information online – travelling to somewhere that’s closed on arrival or inaccessible for wheelchair users, or accessing a service, realising it’s not for you and experiencing the trauma of retelling your story or giving up if you don’t feel heard. Service providers recognise they need to make things easier for individuals: to go beyond how they present their offer to explain and present their offerings in a more uniform, accessible and human way. Yet this collaboration can be tough as it takes time, investment and doesn’t yield immediate results.
How can we improve digital signposting?
That’s why I’m so passionate to have been involved with the Signpost+ programme, which set out to test models, processes, and technology to ensure young people find support when they need it. Working in partnership with mental health providers, we identified six areas of good practice that are essential to delivering digital signposting well.
1. Listen to the voices of young people
To truly support them, it’s essential to understand their unique preferences and experiences. Every young person’s journey is different, and the support on offer should reflect that. Taking the time to learn about their preferred communication styles and the types of support they need ensures service providers are meeting them where they are.
2. Ensure the signposting service is easy to access
Accessibility should be at the heart of every service. In theory, every service should be available to anyone who needs it, but in practice, we need to be proactive in identifying and removing barriers. This means putting measures in place to ensure everyone, regardless of their background, can easily access the help they need.
3. Regularly collect and analyse data to better understand user needs
Effective data management and use can be a powerful tool to continuously enhance signposting services. While much of the internet is geared towards consumers, data can be harnessed to better understand how to reach young people and provide the information they need to make informed decisions about accessing services related to their mental health.
4. Establish strong data quality processes to ensure information is relevant and up to date
Maintaining high-quality data is essential to providing effective signposting services and ensuring the information shared with young people is accurate, relevant, and timely. This helps avoid frustration and ensures young people don’t feel discouraged when seeking support.
5. Build meaningful partnerships to expand the reach of your signposting services
Throughout this project, we’ve learned that building strong, collaborative relationships between service providers is key to creating a unified approach to supporting young people. Sharing insights, addressing challenges together, and aligning our goals helps ensure a collective impact.
6. Strengthen data infrastructure to share insights and build services that truly meet young people’s needs
Our partners work with a variety of stakeholders to deliver support to young people, each bringing their own approach. By gathering data from signposting activities, we can uncover valuable insights about the types of services young people need and the demand for those services in different areas. This data helps inform the development of youth services that are more aligned with their needs and preferences.
But how can these learnings be put into practice when the charities that often provide these services are stretched, and digital is considered “back office” and hard to fund?
Focus on what’s under the hood
When I worked on applying digital technologies in programmes at Oxfam, I saw funders often wanting to invest in exciting, innovative technologies while overlooking the mundane mechanics – like robust data models, which were desperately needed.
Today, it’s the same thing with artificial intelligence where it’s easy to be dazzled by the technology without first ensuring the foundational data and systems are in place to make it effective. Working with some of the UK’s most established and well-known mental health charities on their digital strategies, we realised pushing services ‘at people’ hasn’t worked as well as it could and the need to focus on putting people at the heart and building support around them and their needs instead. To achieve this, what really matters is how the underlying infrastructure of robust data management can offer a solid foundation for making digital mental health support truly effective.
It’s critically important to address the often-overlooked plumbing of service delivery, rather than solely focusing on the shiny new taps! With healthcare strains affecting various aspects of life, getting this right is vital for societal welfare. Imagine a world where finding the right support is as easy as getting a ticket to see your favourite film.
