Pupils help develop mental health app
Stirling’s young people have led the development of a digital prototype that aims to tackle stigma around adolescent mental health.
In the first-ever citizen sourced challenge by CivTech – the Scottish Government programme which invites tech companies to solve public sector challenges – they worked closely with Edinburgh-based company, Voxsio, to address this serious issue using conversational artificial intelligence technology.
Mental health champions in Stirling’s secondary schools and members of the Stirling Youth Forum were among those involved in the pioneering project, which started seven months ago.
And last week they unveiled their prototype – a Chatbot called ‘Alli-Chat’ which will be accessible across all social media platforms – to delegates at CivTech’s Demo Day which was held at the International Conference Centre in Edinburgh.
Designed to help start the conversation about mental health among the younger age-group, Alli-Chat will also offer advice on where to access additional services and support.
Stirling’s young participants also worked with representatives from co-sponsors Stirling Council, NHS National Services Scotland and Health Care Improvement Scotland.
Stirling High S5 pupil Sarah Purser said: “We wanted to develop a digital solution that addressed the stigma of accessing mental health and also started a conversation around this important subject.
“Seeing the Chatbot in action for the first time was really exciting and it was more impressive than we could have imagined.”
Sarah added: “By being available across social media platforms, this innovative technology will be accessible for our generation, whether they need personalised help or are supporting others.
“It has been fantastic to work with Voxsio on this pioneering project and the prototype shows they have really listened to our views, and now we are looking forward to the next stage of the process.”