A research programme is working to develop an AI system that could revolutionise child mental health care.
Dr Anna Moore is leading the project, based at the University of Cambridge, which is using cutting-edge technology to hopefully speed up the diagnosis of mental health conditions in children and identify those most at risk of becoming ill.
It comes as child psychiatrists warn of a child mental health “crisis”, with the NHS estimating that 1 in 5 people under the age of 24 probably need some form of mental health care.
Dr Moore has been awarded a £2.5 million UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Future Leaders Fellowship to enable her to pursue the project, which will see AI technology using routinely collected data about children in order to identify patterns that indicate who is most at risk of mental health problems.
AI to spot trends in child mental health conditions
As a consultant psychiatrist, Dr Moore witnessed the challenges in child mental health care firsthand but now, as an expert in clinical informatics at Cambridge, she hopes there could a digital solution.
She explains:
“Our mental health is affected by genetics, our early experiences in life and our current environment.
“We’re going to use cutting-edge AI technology to look at information that is gathered about us by health, education and social services throughout childhood.
“By bringing it all together we hope to spot trends which can alert a clinician to the fact that a child may be developing an early mental health condition.”
She says that earlier diagnosis will mean that mental health conditions in children can be more easily treated, rather than reaching crisis point.
The new AI-based system is being developed with help from Microsoft and is designed to be used within the NHS and to treat child mental health conditions at the forthcoming Cambridge Children’s Hospital.
The data obtained to help program the algorithms will be anonymised, with codes replacing names and any other personal information.
The project is also receiving input from the Kavli Centre for Ethics, Science and the Public (KCESP) and the Centre for Human-Inspired Artificial Intelligence (CHIAI) to ensure its outcomes benefit patients.
Dr Moore said that families affected by child mental health conditions have been “overwhelmingly supportive.”
AI to highlight need for more child mental health care resources
She hopes that the programme will highlight the need for more resources in child mental health care and that AI technology can help to progress mental health care in the same way it has impacted care for physical conditions like diabetes and cancer.
Meanwhile, the Head of Policy and Influencing at mental health charity Rethink Mental Illness, Jeremy Bernhaut, said that early intervention could be “lifesaving” when it comes to child mental health care.
But he added that, “in many cases, young people currently end up on heartbreakingly long waiting lists for support and the urgent priority is to resolve the lack of funding and workforce.”
In recent years, especially post-pandemic, child mental health referrals have risen dramatically and many parents have reported losing faith in child mental health care after facing agonisingly long waits for treatment.
In addition, national charity helpline Childline recently reported that they had delivered over 105,000 counselling sessions for child mental health and emotional wellbeing last year. This equated to half of all counselling sessions that they provided in 2022-23.
Children across the UK are struggling with stress, anxiety, depression and loneliness and charities are calling for funding to enable all schools and colleges to be able to provide early help and support for those who need it.
Training to support children with their mental health
First Response Training (FRT) is a leading national training provider delivering courses in subjects such as health and safety, first aid, fire safety, manual handling, food safety, mental health, health and social care, safeguarding and more.
They work with a large number of early years and childcare providers, as well as schools, colleges, and children’s services.
Their courses include Understanding Mental Health, Youth Mental Health First Aid, Anxiety Awareness, Self-Harm Awareness and Suicide Awareness.
A trainer from FRT says:
“Children have faced isolation, loneliness, academic upheaval, bereavement, money worries and other difficulties since the pandemic, and, on top of this, when they do come forward with concerns about their mental health they may have to wait a long time for the specialist support they need.
“We are excited to see where this new AI-based project may lead and hope that it can make a substantial difference to children and young people, with better and early diagnosis and more effective and timely treatments provided where they are needed.
“In the meantime, it remains hugely important that anyone who works closely with children and young people has an understanding of mental health, is able to spot the signs that someone may be struggling and can offer appropriate early help and support. Focused training can help with this.”
A brief summary of our mental health training can now be downloaded as an infographic.
You can also download our free Guide to Mental Health Training from our website.
For more information on the training that FRT can provide, please call them today on freephone 0800 310 2300 or send an e-mail to info@firstresponsetraining.com.