batyr

Suicide continues to be the leading cause of death for young Australians, with 80% of occurrences in those aged 15-17(1). Recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics(2) also shows that rates of psychological distress in young people are at an all-time high. Despite this, not enough young Australians are getting the appropriate support for their mental health(3), indicating a missed opportunity for early intervention.

batyr is a for purpose preventative mental health organisation, created and driven by young people, for young people. A recent survey they commissioned found that young people often turn to technology for help, with the internet being the third most common source of support for psychological distress. Yet, only 4% of wellbeing apps are designed for young people, and 0% are focused on improving mental health literacy(4).

OurHerd is a first of its kind mental health app which empowers young people to share stories to create change. Designed in collaboration with over 1,600 young people, the app guides users to relevant content and captures insights from young people that will help to influence and improve Australian mental health services.

The app enables young people aged 15-30 to listen, share and be heard amongst peers navigating their own mental health journeys. The moderated digital community provides a safe space for young people to learn pathways to access support as well as self-care practices they can do every day to support their mental health.

batyr will grow the OurHerd community and uptake through their network of schools and universities. Additional functionality to improve user experience and accessibility for international students at university will be implemented, including subtitles and specific topics and filters relevant to that audience and help seeking resources.

By giving young people a platform to share their lived experiences with a like-minded community, batyr aims to help users confidently communicate their experience and support positive mental health conversations. Through participation in OurHerd, batyr hopes to reduce the stigma associated with accessing support for mental health, by empowering young people to connect, communicate and seek help when they need it.

The sophisticated app will also capture insights and trends from young people’s lived experiences and amplify their voices to inform decisions made by government, policymakers, service providers, educational institutions and workplaces about youth mental health.

References

(1) https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/causes-death/causes-death-australia/latest-release, opens in a new tab

(2) https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/mental-health/national-study-mental-health-and-wellbeing/latest-release, opens in a new tab

(3) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/45268716_Help-Seeking_for_Substance_Use_Anxiety_and_Affective_Disorders_Among_Young_People_Results_from_the_2007_Australian_National_Survey_of_Mental_Health_and_Wellbeing, opens in a new tab

(4) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7275252/ , opens in a new tab

Studying abroad, while exciting, can present a unique set of challenges as you learn to adapt to a new culture and way of living without the comforts of home and family.

For international students, studying has been especially tough with COVID-19 restrictions making it harder for students to form those informal social connections and build strong support networks that you often find at university.

In addition, research suggests that not enough students are reaching out for support and while 83.9% of international students experience elevated psychological distress, only 34.5% will engage in help-seeking behaviours.

To help reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and create an environment for students to reconnect and talk about mental health and the challenges they’re facing, we partnered with batyr to deliver a series of online and in-person mental health education programs.

The programs included 60 - 90 minute educational mental health sessions, providing students with the appropriate skills and resources to look after their mental health. In addition, the partnership allowed batyr to deliver workshop-style speaker training to help students learn how to share their experiences of mental ill-health safely and effectively with their peers.

The funding also enabled batyr to train program delivery facilitators to deliver engaging programs to international students, so they better understand the support available to them to keep on top of their mental health and wellbeing.

The funding allowed batyr to deliver 30 programs which reached over 2,400 university students, including 1,600 who were studying internationally in Australia.

Additionally, a survey of 230,000 students across all their programs found that,68% of students indicated they are more likely to seek help and 100% of participants strongly agreed they felt more confident to share their lived experience with mental ill-health.

Additionally, 100% of participants agreed or strongly agreed that their story could have a positive impact when shared with others.

By offering these programs to Australian and international students, we hope to equip them with the knowledge of the support networks, mental health resources and connections available to them to continue to thrive abroad.