Anna Kydd Khuluma mHealth: Global Projects, Software & Critical Perspectives Icd4 London Meetup GSMA HQ, London, UK Tuesday 26th January 2016 For more info: http://www.meetup.com/London-ICT4D/events/227274734/

1. The power of mobile phone
support groups in improving
mental health outcomes
Anna Kydd
26 January, 2016

2. The scale of the global
mental health problem

3. The scale of the global mental health problem
0
1.5
3
4.5
6
2010 2030
A recent publication by the World Economic Forum shows that
mental illness cost the global economy $2.5 trillion in 2010 and
is estimated to rise to at least $6.0 trillion by 2030.

4. The scale of the global mental health problem
‘No Health Without
Mental Health’
- World Health Organisation

5. Low-Cost Accessible Scalable
Mechanisms
The scale of the global mental health problem
Providing psychosocial support for those facing chronic,
stigmatised and often social isolating conditions
$

6. The power of
support groups

7. The power of support groups
The SHM Foundation’s extensive research with those living
with HIV in Mexico, UK and South Africa showed the need
that many had to be connected to others living with the same
condition to help them navigate living with their condition and
deal with the impact of social isolation

8. The power of support groups
There were however barriers that were preventing them from
taking part in a support group: stigma and discrimination,
finding the time to attend, finding a group that met their needs
and having the necessary funds to attend

9. The power of support groups
Accessible
Immediate
Tailored
Khuluma was set up by the SHM Foundation to address
these barriers to taking part in a support group by
developing a mobile phone support group model that is:

10. The power of support groups

11. Mental health and HIV
positive adolescents

12. Mental health and HIV positive adolescents
Aged 15-24 in South Africa are infected with
HIV (UNAIDS, 2010)
15%
Young Women
5%
Young Men

13. Mental health and HIV positive adolescents
‘HIV positive adolescents
are at increased risk of
mental health problems’
- Abdallah S. Daar, 2014

14. HIV positive adolescents require counselling
and other psychosocial services but in many
instances the services are overburdened
Mental health and HIV positive adolescents

15. Mental health and HIV positive adolescents
Hospitals and clinics that are keen to provide the
support are faced with the following challenges:
Finding an
appropriate space
Trained
staff onsite

16. How does
Khuluma work?

17. How does Khuluma work?
Khuluma provides facilitated and interactive support to closed
groups of 10-15 participants. Participants are able to communicate
amongst themselves and with a facilitator via mobile phone about
any topic that they deem important to discuss

18. How does Khuluma work?
The support groups run for a period of three months, each day
after school hours, the facilitator will bring up a ‘topic of the day’ to
generate a conversation within the group

19. How does Khuluma work?
1. Adolescents are
recruited at
different clinics
2. They are then assigned a
support group with 10-15 other
members and a facilitator
3. The support groups
run for three months
and in that time
6. The adolescents meet in
person and find ways to
continue to stay in touch
4. Conversation topics such
as careers advice, sexual
health or medication
5. Guest speakers such as a
nutritionist, psychologist or
careers advisor join the talk.
3Months

20. What we’ve
found out

21. What we’ve found out
Our participants send a large volume of messages
a day, uptake has been very successful
averaging 6 text
messages a day
per person

22. Results from an evaluation conducted with our university partners
Yale School of Medicine and the University of Pretoria with 99 HIV
positive adolescents have found the following outcomes:
Increase
in social
support
What we’ve found out
Decrease in
feelings of
internalised stigma
Increased
levels of
knowledge

23. What next?

24. We would love to continue to see this model expand to provide the
mental health support that these HIV positive adolescents need but
also to apply this model to other global health conditions that
feature the following characteristics:
Social
isolation
What next?
Chronic health
condition
Affected by
stigma

25. The scale of the global mental health problem
‘We would love to see a time when those affected
by a health condition who are in need of regular
support will have access to their own tailored
support group via mobile phone so that they can
receive the support that they desperately need.’

26. Questions
So wat get AIDS
in our body?
I sometimes find it difficult to
drink medicine when I am angry
I feel like I dnt deserv to live
I feel more comfortable talking to
people in this group because we call
have HIV – I am not the only one
Guys I am HIV and eat
with my friends my frnd
going to be HIV too?
The hard part about living with hiv is the fact that us have it and u
r scared that some day people might hate u because u have hiv
and ur also scared that u might say it and then be ashamed.
When am with my frendz and
we are having so much fun I
cant disappoint them
They were making me vomit so I stopped but now I drink
them. I didn’t take them for two months..I was then
admitted into hospital … I am dirkg them with yogurt now.