International innovations in mental health
Mental health services had to implement innovations at pace to ensure that some of the most vulnerable people in society could continue to access mental health support, while protecting service users and staff from the virus.
The NHS Confederation’s Mental Health Network and International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) have worked together to capture these innovations. In this series of case studies from ten countries, we see examples of how mental health services have implemented innovations in response to COVID-19.
A number of key themes emerged from the case studies:
- the advantages of digital platforms in improving access
- the importance of supporting the wellbeing of staff
- using data and evaluation to drive improvements and make the financial case for innovations
- benefits of co-producing services with service users and staff
- and lessons in how the availability of innovations are communicated.
While the pandemic will leave behind it significant and long-lasting effects, it will also leave a legacy of accelerated innovations, the learning from which will not be soon forgotten. These innovations will improve mental health services across the globe long after the impact of the pandemic has abated.