Feeling blue? Maybe it’s time to chat… with a bot.
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
In the U-K, Johanna Habicht and team tried out a new AI-powered chatbot. Its job? Help people refer themselves to mental health services — no calls, no paperwork. Just a quick, private chat.
Results? Clinics using the bot saw a fifteen percent boost in referrals! This is more than twice compared to those without it. Even better? Minority group participation. Referrals for nonbinary individuals shot up a hundred seventy-nine percent. For ethnic minorities, twenty-nine percent!
Why? The chatbot’s anonymity made it easier to ask for help. This shows that digital tools can help close care gaps.
Because sometimes opening up… starts with logging in.
Reference: Habicht, J., Viswanathan, S., Carrington, B. et al. Closing the accessibility gap to mental health treatment with a personalized self-referral chatbot. Nat Med 30, 595–602 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02766-xar