7 INTEGRATED MENTAL HEALTH
Mental health care continues to be underserved, largely undiagnosed, and siloed from the physical health system -all exacerbated by the global pandemic.
Upstream curated this trend report for attendees of the HLTH USA 2024 conference on October 20-23. We believe these 7 healthcare trends are essential for enhancing outcomes for everyone. As experts in Human-Centered Design, we are excited to see these trends gain momentum and are committed to continuing our contributions to their growth.
Barriers to mental health:
Affected by stigma.
Lack of awareness.
Limited and inequitable access.
Improve screening access and frequency:
Standardize mental health screenings in annual check-ups.
Train physical care providers to recognize the symptoms of mental health challenges.
Explore innovative ways to scale access through virtual care.
Employer investment in:
Virtual reality stress management.
AI-driven tools to recognize symptoms.
24/7 chatbot support.
Design goals to increase engagement:
Destigmatize mental health discussions.
Ensure equitable access to resources.
Improve standards of care.
Integrate mental health care with physical health care, and community-based providers.
More equitable support for postpartum mental health.
Drive collaboration among policymakers, payers, and clinicians.
Strategies for integrated mental health care:
Engage health providers inside the health care system and community care, and individuals with lived experiences to design interventions that are accessible, integrated, equitable, and comprehensive.
Why we’re excited:
Human-centered design reduces the stigma surrounding mental health by involving individuals with lived experiences and front-line staff in the design process. This collaboration creates safe, accessible, and community-friendly environments and tools, fostering open dialogue and normalizing conversations about mental health. By promoting empathy and dismantling misconceptions, human-centered design can make mental health care more approachable and inclusive.
