The Irish government has published a national digital mental health strategy, focusing on access, communications, digital tools, co-production, research, innovation, and technology. Key digital initiatives include the HSE Health App, national shared care record, community care record, and EHR.
The new strategy builds on the “Sharing the Vision” mental health policy for 2020-2030, which featured two recommendations specifically on digital and technology: the use of social media channels and digital in promoting mental health services and signposting support; and digital health solutions to support service delivery and empower service users.
The overarching vision is to take advantage of the potential of digital technologies to improve the quality and accessibility of mental health information, tools, and services. Principles include co-design with service users and the wider public, standards and governance for digital mental health, digitally secure foundations, digital inclusion, and a digitally enabled workforce.
Mary Butler, minister for mental health, said: “This strategy sets out a clear vision: to harness and scale the use of digital technologies to provide safe, effective and accessible mental health information, tools and services. It represents a significant step forward in how we deliver mental health services in Ireland. By embracing digital innovation, we can expand accessibility and increase reach so that more people can access the supports they need. This is about building a more connected, responsive and inclusive mental health service.”
Implementation of the new strategy will include service improvement and development across apps, websites, wearables, EHR, and EPMA, the government states, as well as looking at user autonomy, target audience, and purpose. Governance structures will be put in place to ensure provision reflects a diverse range of needs, including areas “under-developed to date”, such as the use of tech in supporting specialist and acute mental health services. The HSE App, My Mental Health Plan, and Navigator will be used to promote access to services and resources, and digital mental health will be embraced through integrated service development planning.
Digital infrastructure, digitally enabled workplaces, a digitally skilled workforce, and digitally enabled service users will be key to maximising the opportunities from digital and technology, according to the government. Stakeholders will be engaged in wider digital developments, including in supporting the Community Care Record project. A minimum dataset for digital mental health will be established, and the first HSE Framework for Health Innovation, due to be delivered in Q1 2026 as a blueprint to foster innovation, will be reviewed for how it can support the development of new digital mental health products and services. Partners will further be engaged to help advance initiatives and emergent use cases on things like AI predictive modelling in care and research.
Digital mental health products and services will need to meet data standards, General Data Protection Regulations and the European Health Data Space (EHDS), and the use of mental health dashboards and tools such as Power BI will be developed. Data sharing between stakeholders will be supported, with discussion around the development of anonymised, integrated mental health datasets, and new opportunities like the HSE community care record will be monitored for opportunities and compliance.
“To date, digital mental health has been largely unregulated and lacking in a coherent and accepted set of standards,” the government states. “Standards for digital mental health will be developed in line with agreed principles and values and implemented to continuously and flexibly maintain high levels of safety and ethics on behalf of all stakeholders.” HSE will work on regulations and standards to be used across the health system.
Around access and equity, the government commits to using digital technology to increase access to mental health information, tools, and services for all. Recommendations from the Digital Inclusion and Access to Mental Health Services (2023) report are to be reviewed as the basis for this work, and the Department of Health is developing an Inclusion Health Framework for the wider health sector that will be used to inform implementation. Digital mental health products and services will be reviewed for their compliance with language and other legislation on accessibility and best practice, whilst these requirements will be incorporated into standards for new products and services.
Communications will be targeted to drive awareness around the use and value of digital technology in mental health, including the use of local champions. Use will be made of existing training mechanisms to improve training on digital health for staff, and the government suggests that the curriculum for training programmes be adapted to reflect the “important and growing” role of digital in mental health and the skills required for frontline staff in this sector. Potential uses for tech like AI will be considered to help free-up capacity for clinical engagement.
Wider trend: Digital mental health
NHS England has shared that 50,000 eligible adults living with bipolar, schizophrenia, psychosis, or major depression in England and Wales have been invited to the “world’s largest” mental health study looking to promote personalised treatment for severe mental illness. The GlobalMinds study, led by mental health data science company Akrivia Health Ltd in partnership with Cardiff University, will last for three years, and will ultimately expand to include participants from other countries.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued new guidance for the public and healthcare professionals on the use of apps and digital tools for mental health support, aiming to help people make more informed choices and “know what to do if something doesn’t feel right”. The MHRA also lists five things to check prior to using a digital mental health tool, stating that claims around medical benefits should be clearly explained and supported by evidence, that age and intended users should be clearly stated, and that “trustworthy products will explain how they have been tested or evaluated”.
Researchers at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Cambridge are to lead on a project to create a “publicly accessible platform for exploring how genes and molecules influence mental health”. The Open Psychiatry Project, has been provided with £2.3 million funding from the UK Research and Innovation Medical Research Council and the National Institute for Health and Care Research. The project aims to deliver a platform to offer data-driven support to researchers, clinicians, health partners and patients when it comes to understanding mental health conditions and how best to treat them.
