This presentation will discuss:

• Current key issues on artificial intelligence (AI) and e-mental health that span the globe
• Smart collaboration across borders
• The Mental Health Commission of Canada’s next steps in e-mental health, including app assessment, the E-Mental Health Strategy for Canada, and artificial intelligence guidance
• Building a stronger tomorrow

The need to come together as an international e-mental health community is more critical now than ever. There is incredible progress happening in e-mental health, with AI taking the main stage, and progress is accelerating at a rapid pace. There are many positive examples of e-mental health tools. These products save lives by providing flexible care options, reducing stigma, boosting system efficiencies, and enabling anonymous mental health support. However, a decade into the digital mental health space, our early concerns seem almost quaint compared with the challenges presented by today’s AI revolution. There are documented cases of transparency shortcomings, misinformation, privacy violations, bias, and technology lacking a human-centred design.
 
Together with a diverse network of collaborators across Canada and the world, the Commission has spearheaded key documents and frameworks to guide best practices in e-mental health. These include the E-Mental Health Strategy for Canada and the Commission’s Mental Health App Assessment Framework, which is being implemented in a provincial app library in Newfoundland and Labrador.
 
While respecting the incredible developments in technology and mental health, the Commission is striving to reduce harm and loss of trust by ensuring digital products are high-quality, safe, and ethical. A focus on cultural safety and uplifting lived experience voices for meaningful change has become a cornerstone of our work.
 
As we have entered the AI era, the Commission is developing AI guidance for mental health and substance use health in partnership with the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction. The initial themes for this first-ever guidance in Canada will be discussed at the eMHIC Congress.
 
The global successes and challenges we learn from each other will help us build the strongest tomorrow in digital mental health care. Join Maureen Abbott, Director of Innovation, from the Mental Health Commission of Canada, to discuss what is next for digital mental health guidance.