Driving awareness of Mental Health services; iPLATO’s myGP increases registrations for Kooth
Currently, one in six people in the UK experience mental health issues. Studies have shown that the Covid-19 pandemic contributed to increased prevelance of mental health issues. While there was an increase in the need for services, referrals to mental health support by GPs dropped by a third during the pandemic. This led to a rise in demand for online mental health support services.
Kooth provides online mental wellbeing services for children and young adults 10-25. Adults 18+ receive support from Qwell. These services are commissioned by NHS CCGs, local authorities, charities and workplaces. They are also available for patients via the myGP app. All support provided is free and anonymous with no waiting lists or referrals, help is available 24/7.
MyGP supported Kooth by helping them promote their services to targeted CCGs across London and the North. The messaging pilot sent 50,000 SMS messages to adults aged 26-45 with the Qwell service link in Lewisham, Bolton, Liverpool and Newcastle. It extended to another 50,000 SMS messages to south-west and south-east London, an additional 20,000 SMS messages in Southwark and a further 13,000 across Kent.
In total, 114,643 SMS messages were sent, resulting in 8909 clicks and 914 registrations. Through these targeted SMS messages myGP increased registrations to the Kooth platform, providing access to mental health services for patients in need.
