Ready, Set, Connect!

Healthwatch Brighton and Hove and Young Healthwatch Sussex carried out the Ready, Set, Connect! consultation between December 2020 and March 2021 to explore barriers faced by young people aged 16 to 25 when accessing remote mental health appointments. The project engaged 98 young people through surveys, interviews and focus groups. The main barriers identified were difficulties building trust and rapport with professionals remotely, concerns about privacy and confidentiality, anxiety about video and phone appointments, stigma around seeking mental health support, and technology-related problems. 

Communication and trust were the strongest themes. Young people felt it was harder to express emotions, build relationships and feel understood through phone or video appointments. Many worried they might be misunderstood or misdiagnosed because professionals could not fully observe their body language or emotional responses. Privacy was also a major concern, particularly for those living with parents, housemates or in shared accommodation, where they feared being overheard during appointments.

Young people suggested several practical solutions. These included introductory meetings before formal appointments to help build rapport, sharing information about the professional beforehand, using ice-breakers at the start of appointments, providing clear information about what to expect, and allowing different ways of communicating during sessions such as chat functions or drawing. Many also suggested creating safe community spaces where young people could access private appointments and suitable technology if these were not available at home. 

Healthwatch concluded that better preparation and communication could significantly improve young people’s experiences of remote mental health support. Working with young volunteers, the project developed a practical guide to help young people prepare for online and phone mental health appointments. The report recommended that services pay greater attention to building trust, reducing anxiety, supporting privacy and offering flexible communication methods to make remote mental health care more accessible and effective for young people.