CADSCAN

Children and young people with mental illness wait an average of ten years before receiving help. Rates of depression and anxiety amongst young people have increased by 70% in the last 25 years. Anxiety disorders are common and are associated with suicidal behaviours, drug and alcohol misuse and poor educational attainment. PhoBot is a voice-operated conversational agent designed to deliver a purpose-built CBT programme to treat anxiety in adolescents. It is built around a natural, low-friction interface to facilitate engagement and efficacy and delivered via smartphone using a low-cost pricing model.