Dr. Ken Carswell is a clinical psychologist and Mental Health Specialist at WHO Headquarters in Geneva. He serves as the focal point for digital mental health and innovation in the Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, leading projects that harness digital technologies to improve mental health globally.

He has played a central role in the development, evaluation, and implementation of evidence-based, scalable psychological interventions. These include Self-Help Plus (SH+), a group-based multimedia stress management course; Step-by-Step, a digital intervention for adults experiencing depression; and STARS, a chatbot-based intervention for young people experiencing significant psychological distress. He led the development of a digital decision-support tool based on WHO’s mhGAP-IG, which was tested in randomised controlled trials in Nepal and Nigeria. He has also played a central role in the development and implementation of the WHO/UNICEF EQUIP initiative.

Most recently, Dr. Carswell has supported nationwide implementation of digital and group based self-help interventions in Lebanon, Thailand, and Ukraine, and he regularly advises stakeholders on how to implement, strengthen, and scale psychological interventions. He is also co-leading the department’s work to better understand the diverse impacts of digital technology on mental health.