Beyond ProfessionalsYoung people supporting each other online

Sophie Potter Online Community Coordinator

Gail Phelps Volunteer Peer Moderator

Young People &Mental Health

Why ReachOut.com?

• 1 in 4 young people have a mental health issue• 70% don’t get help• 75% of all disorders start before 25• Suicide is the biggest killer of young people

ONSET TREATMENT10 YEARS

“A real challenge exists with our mental health services at the moment. They're not easily accessible and we don't have enough professionals, particularly in our regional, rural, remote communities. Technologies provide us with a way of connecting anyone anywhere with a person who can help them.”

Assoc Prof Jane Burns

CEO Young and Well Cooperative

Research Centre (2012)

Less than 30% get help

If young people

can’t come to us,

we go to them.

90% of young people are online everyday

We help by

• Reducing the burden on limited services• Extend the accessibility of mental

health services• Improve understanding of mental health

difficulties• Decrease stigma and improve motivation to

access services

Our mission is to help young people live happier lives

About the Inspire Foundation

ReachOut.com was the first online youth mental health service in the world

1992 19981996

2000 - 2008

1997

2009 - 2013

2006

Online tools for mental health and help seeking

ReachOut.com channels

Flagship service

1.3 million unique visitors each year

Facts sheets, personal stories, videos, tools, tips, peer support

Topics from wellbeing to tough times

Component of RO.com

2000 active members

10,000 unique visitors per month

Anonymous and private

Peer support

Discussions range from wellbeing to tough times

Daily tips and challenges

Text message campaigns last 14 days

Each campaign on a specific theme 

Topics on wellbeing

20, 000 fans

Reach young people not engaging with mental health services,

Use language and format that is meaningful to them

Focus on wellbeing and engagement

149k views

Innovative, relevant methods to reach young people with mental health messaging

Focus on wellbeing

7,000 followers

Innovative, relevant methods to reach young people with mental health messaging

Focus on wellbeing and engagement

We build apps and tools to help young people

Partnership with research teams

We assess and feature other tools we assess

Wellbeing to tough times

Flexible approach

Prevention, promotion and early intervention

ReachOut.com targets

1. Mental Health Promotion and Universal Prevention;

2. Selective and Indicated Prevention; and

3. Early intervention.

Youth led health promotion and prevention

Does: Does not:

Universal health promotionPrevention Early intervention service

Provide treatmentOne on one interventionCounseling etc.

A space for peer support

How we help: Universal

Forums

Conversations

Sessions and

challenges

help young people connect their

experiences to those of others

that share and build knowledge

/ skills for building + managing

wellbeing

where young people participate in

activities that raise awareness +

increase understanding about mental

health

How we help: Selected/Indicated

Hearing others’

experience

Threads about getting

help

Community participation

helps young people recognise their feelings and

experience + increase

their understanding

that increase positive attitudes towards

help-seeking and the belief that timely

/ appropriate support can be effective

that increases participation in a positive social

support network, leading to improved self

esteem and resilience and helps young people

increase self awareness, self monitoring and

problem solving skills

How we help: early intervention

Peer mod referral

Threads about

getting help

Online forums

that help young people recognize

symptoms + provide actionable help

that increase positive attitudes towards

help-seeking and the belief that timely /

appropriate support can be effective

that connect young people with a social

support network + link young people

seeking help to information and services

ReachOut.com forums boost protective factors, such as:

• Sense of belonging• Adaptive coping

strategies

• Help-seeking behaviour• Mental health literacy

Community forums

Risk Management

• Young people design, role model & enforce guidelines: 

• Anonymity & privacy: 

• Peer-to-peer support: 

• Clear boundaries & extent of service: 

• Self-moderation: • Technical risk

mitigation:

Self Moderation

Peer/Pro Mods & Staff

Technical mitigation

Peer moderation

Peer mods are vital

… and critical to the success of ReachOut.com by:

• Building community • Providing peer-to-peer support - empathy through shared

experience• Proves there is a “light at the end of the tunnel”• Foster a respectful site culture: focus on the issues rather than

individual problem focused• Manage risk by non permissible content – removal

or escalation• Strengthen youth participation model, ensuring RO.com is

relevant for all young people

Who are these peer mods?• Currently 16 youth

moderators across Australia

• All from different backgrounds

• All with a desire to contribute to the youth mental health community

• Each volunteers two hours per week

What do you actually do?

• Contribute to the forums

• Listen to users

• Moderate content and manage risk

• Maintain a positive help seeking culture

But how do you help?

• Promotes individual experience, but a shared understanding of that experience

• Places young people as the experts

• Provides peer based empathy and support

• Generates positive and constructive conversations

How do you promote healthy helpseeking?

• By providing examples of their own help seeking behaviours

• Using empathy and support to encourage and promote the importance of help seeking

• Providing links to relevant and trustworthy information

• Being community role models

• Practicing self-care

Working with volunteers

Youth Involvement/Volunteering

• From the beginning, young people were at the centre of everything Inspire does

• Youth mods are part of a wider YI program

• 120 people: RO Film Crew, Youth Editorial Board, ROMP, RO Speakers Bureau etc

• Private online community forum for all involved with our YI programs

Youth involvement principles

04/14/2023 Our mission is to help millions of young people lead happier lives

Involvement throughout the service design and delivery process

A variety of opportunities to contribute in meaningful ways

Consider the spectrum of users and include a diversity of perspectives

Ask young people what they want and how they want it delivered

Lessons I learned

• Training is key + follow up• Documentation usability• Be available but have boundaries• Recruit like you would for paid employment• Offer development pathways• Get anonymous feedback• Model self care practices

Measures of success

1.4 million unique visitors to ReachOut.com in 2011/2012, & 664,332 engaged users = 27% increase on the previous year

Almost 50% of young people we interact with on social channels are young men, those who need us most

50% of these visits take place after 5pm and before 9am

77% of young people who use ReachOut.com register high or very high levels of psychological distress (higher for forums)

75% of young people who used ReachOut.com in 2011 reported that it helped them to better understand mental health issues

Nearly half (46%) said it helped them to ask a professional for help

“I never thought that a silly post about my feelings on an internet forum could end up being the start to a new change. I have realized that I can recover from this and I thank you so much for pushing me in the right direction. I feel that I will get through this.”

“Veronica”, 19yo, 15th March 2013