The mental health of the masses at the moment is in a state of disruption. One of the biggest causes of death in the US is suicide, which is a by-product of depression and anxiety. Since there is this negative stereotype attached to people having mental health-related problems, many who are suffering from this have withdrawn themselves from reaching out for help as well. It is of significant importance that the society has an open mind as far as mental problems are concerned. Apart from this, seeking for help from all possible channels is just as important as well and one of these channels is technology.
Thanks to the technological advancements, nothing seems unachievable anymore. An increasing number of software start-ups have been trying to make it their sole mission to counter this problem. One such startup is called Mindstrong – a company that has hired expert medical doctors and created machine-learning programs that work side-by-side in order to address issues faced by people especially relating to their Mental Health Care.
Smartphone will help to fight anxiety
Mindstrong is founded by the former director of the National Institute of Mental Health, Dr. Thomas Insel along with many others who have created a program that can be easily installed on a smartphone in order to diagnose users who are facing emotional problems.
The program created by Mindstrong essentially makes use of several personal details such as a person’s biometric data including his/her pulse and activity levels, in order to come to a conclusion regarding their mental situation. The experts at the AI start-up believe that users behave differently with their smartphones when they are upset, as opposed to when they are happy.
The software is designed in a manner that it can track the user’s physical interaction with their respective smartphones, at what time of the day, thereby gauging whether they are happy or sad. Dr. Insel hopes that their latest innovation serves as a breakthrough in the field of mental health care.
How will the AI work?
The program is purportedly created in a manner so that it can collect all the personal insights that otherwise remain untouched, to the doctors employed by Mindstrong.
Their main objective is to bridge up the gap that exists between the patients and the doctors – something that may not be communicated during a therapy session. The program also comes along with an AI-powered chatbot called ‘Woebot’ that is specifically kept in place so that it can talk to the users, and strike up a personal conversation with them regarding their mental-health related problems.
