Digital Innovation: How Technology Supports Youth | Jane Burns | TEDxUNSW
## Speaker Context - Mom: Speaker who dedicated 20 years of her life to Suicide Prevention; Mother of three children (Harry, Holly, and Angus). - Audience: Not explicitly stated, but implied to be professionals or interested parties given the context of a presentation on technology and mental health. - Framing: The speaker establishes that she is drawing a parallel between the immediate, known protocol for a physical cold or breast lump, and the current lack of clear protocol or support system for mental/emotional well-being. ## People - Mom: Speaker, dedicated 20 years to Suicide Prevention, mother of three. - Harry: Speaker's child, currently five. - Holly: Speaker's child, currently seven. - Angus: Speaker's child, currently nine, born with Down Syndrome, diagnosed with autism, and is nonverbal. - Professor Ian Hickey: Brilliant researcher/scientist. - Professor Pat Mcari: Brilliant researcher/scientist. - Professor Helen Christensen: Brilliant researcher/scientist. - James Tuton: Entrepreneur who created Moonlight Cinema. - Jamie Martino: Entrepreneur, brought in for collaboration on the system. - Chris R: Young social entrepreneur who started the social movement around quitting alcohol on Sundays. ## Organizations - Beyond Blue: Organization mentioned in the context of mental health awareness. - Butterfly Foundation: Resource relevant for eating disorders. - Headspace: Organization mentioned as a resource. - Lifeline: Organization mentioned in the context of suicide prevention; recipient of systemic improvement efforts. - Brains Trust: An organization set up to involve young people (age 12 to 25) in shaping research, development, practice, and policy. - Synergy: The system/initiative whose intent is to bring together various resources into one seamless system for mental well-being care. - MAC (Mindfulness): A concept/therapy area associated with James Tuton's work. - CU (Counselling Unit): Mentioned in relation to the Recharge app. - GU of Brain and Mind Centre: Creator of the Recharge app. ## Places - Australia: The setting of the social movement concerning alcohol use. ## Tools, Tech & Products - Glass of water: Used by the speaker for analogy. - Mammogram: Medical test performed after discovering a lump. - Ultrasound: Medical test performed after discovering a lump. - iPad: Device used by Angus for communication; general platform for accessing care/support. - iPhone: Device used for accessing care/support. - Moonlight Cinema: Product created by James Tuton, related to mindfulness. - Music Escape: Simple app that helps manage stress based on music playlists. - Recharge: App co-created with the GU of Brain and Mind Centre, designed for young men to engage sleep and activity. - Synergy: The integrated system designed to bring together various care resources; accessed via iPad/iPhone. - Apps: General term for digital tools used for well-being monitoring. ## Concepts & Definitions - Curiosity: Described as the most valuable asset, concerning the mind and brain. - Mental Capital: Described by the Prime Minister as the most valuable asset for Australia, more valuable than mining or farming. - Sleep/Wellness Management: The goal of tracking data flow between apps to understand what is making sleep difficult. - Self-manage/Self-managing: The state of being empowered and in control of one's wellness. - Clinically orientative survey: A survey designed to pick up where a person is in the stage of a potential mental illness. - Agile methodology: A process used in the Brains Trust where people are involved in shaping practice and getting a product people want to use. ## Numbers & Data - 20 years: Duration of the speaker's life dedicated to Suicide Prevention. - 5: Harry's current age. - 7: Holly's current age. - 9: Angus's current age. - 18: Age referenced regarding advice to younger self. - 80: The number of amazing young people in the Brains Trust. - 12 to 25: The age range of the young people in the Brains Trust. - 75%: Percentage of young people who will not seek help despite awareness campaigns. - 15 to 24: The age group for which suicide is still the leading cause of death. - One in four: Fraction of young people expected to experience a mental health disorder. ## Claims & Theses - We all know what you do when you have a cold you buy some cold and flu tablets you eat some chicken noodle soup and you have a cup of tea with lemon and honey in it. - We don't immediately know what to do or where to get support or how to get that help or when we should actually get that help when something happens to our brain or our mind. - The more ill you become the less likely it is that you're actually going to get support. - The things that make us the people that we are are the things we can love. - The challenges in understanding mental illness is that it's complex: a complex mix between your brain, your environment, your genetics, what's happening in your family life, what's happening at school, at work, and all of the stresses that might come from living in the world in which we live. - It's not rocket science [the process of developing the system]. - The Australian government have continued to invest in it [Synergy]. - The intent and purpose of Synergy was to bring them into a system that was seamless so the person no matter where they landed Got the Right Care at the right time. - We believe that we can use these Technologies for good not evil. - We want to determine can we support and treat online and if we can keep people self-managing because that's about being empowered and being in control. - We can measure whether the therapies are working whether the medications are working and we'll be able to tailor treatments to suit you. ## Mechanisms & Processes - Cold protocol: Buying cold and flu tablets, eating chicken noodle soup, drinking tea with lemon and honey. - Discovery/Diagnosis Process: Discovered lump in breast $\rightarrow$ Went to doctor $\rightarrow$ Seen specialist $\rightarrow$ Had mammogram and ultrasound $\rightarrow$ Received confirmation via text/email. - Mental Health Difficulty Escalation: Being anxious, sad, miserable, or angry, or experiencing body image issues, leads to not knowing where or when to seek support. - Systemic Flaw: Lack of support understanding for mental health compared to physical health crises. - Synergy Data Flow: Data flows between systems (e.g., sleep app data) so the system can understand the interrelation. - Treatment Measurement: Monitoring to determine if therapies or medications are working to allow for tailored treatment adjustments. ## Timeline & Events - Christmas last year: Speaker discovered a lump in her breast. - 80s: Decade associated with the perm mentioned in the talk. - Back plus 20 years ago: When the speaker started in suicide prevention. - 5 years ago: When the speaker thought "what do we do about this?" regarding mental health support. ## Examples & Cases - Harry wanting to be a clown: Anecdote from childhood. - Holly wanting to be a fairy: Anecdote from childhood. - Angus communication method: Uses an iPad to communicate because he is nonverbal. - Example of social movement: Chris R building a community for quitting drinking on Sundays. - Recharge mechanism: To stop the alarm, one must get up and do star jumps. - International flight incident: A researcher forgot to turn off an alarm, requiring star jumps to turn it off. ## Trade-offs & Alternatives - Option 1 (Cold): Buys tablets, soup, tea/lemon/honey. - Option 2 (Mental Health): Current situation is unknown support pathways for emotional/mental struggles. - Option A (Early Intervention): Using technologies to provide support when someone is struggling before it becomes critical. - Option B (Advanced Intervention): If required, using technologies to facilitate consultation with a professional. - Option C (Self-Management): Empowering people to remain in control through self-management. - Option D (Treatment Modification): If self-management fails, using data to measure treatment efficacy to tailor care (e.g., changing from music therapy to walking). ## Counterarguments & Caveats - The assertion that all issues are just "in your mind" is incorrect. - Despite stigma campaigns, the statistics on youth suicide remain unchanged. - 75% of young people will not seek help despite awareness efforts. - The speaker notes that "no professionals aren't important they are just as important" (implying the value of both professional and self-managed care). ## Methodology - Research used in the Brains Trust: Involved young people as partners in research, practice, and policy. - Agile methodology: Employed in the Brains Trust work. - Data collection: Involves starting with a wellness survey tailored to the individual's needs. - API Integration: Ability to pull in biometric data through the APIs of Synergy. ## References Cited - Lunar/Luning: Cartoonist whose work is mentioned as a favorite. - Beyond Blue: Mentioned for awareness work. - Australian government: Body that continued to invest in Synergy. - James Tuton: Entrepreneur who created Moonlight Cinema. - Chris R: Young social entrepreneur who initiated the Sunday sobriety community. ## Conclusions & Recommendations - The goal is to determine if we can support and treat online, and if we can keep people self-managing. - If professional support is needed, the technology should facilitate the transfer of self-managed data to the professional. - The ultimate goal is to create a system where people are "in control" of their care journey. ## Implications & Consequences - If technology is used correctly: The system allows for continuous monitoring and adaptive care adjustments. - If ignored: The current high rates of youth suicide and lack of support pathways persist. - Without Synergy: The system is confusing, and people don't know which specific resource (e.g., Beyond Blue vs. Butterfly Foundation) to use. ## Open Questions - Can we support and treat online? - Can we keep people self-managing? - Can we ensure that when people speak to a professional, they can immediately look at the compiled data to guide the conversation? ## Verbatim Moments - "I'm not going to throw this on you at all." - "The most valuable asset that we have which which is our mind and our brain our curiosity the things that make us tick the things that make us the people that we are the people who can love." - "I can tell you this my favorite cartoonist is luning and one of the things that you can never control is the messiness and the complexity of life." - "I can never underestimate the burden that it has on families on friends on the community on society." - "it is a national tragedy and Lifeline call it a crisis and it is one in four young people will experience a mental health disorder." - "the idea being there is no wrong door." - "we B it into the work that we did." - "the data is encrypted it's safely stored." - "we'll be able to measure whether the therapies are working whether the medications are working and we'll be able to tailor treatments to suit you."