ReachOut Wins NFP Tech Award for 'PeerChat' Innovation
Mental health organisation ReachOut has won the ‘Not-for-profit Tech Innovator of the Year’ award at the 2023 Australian Not-for-profit Technology Awards for their development of innovative mental health service ‘PeerChat’.
The award recognises a not-for-profit organisation that has best showcased innovation through the use of technology to effectively deliver programs and/or services that positively impact the community.
In 2022, leading youth mental health organisation ReachOut launched a new digital service to address the barriers to help-seeking experienced by young people aged 18-25. The service also allows young people to see exactly when the next appointment is available, generally on the same day.
ReachOut is Australia’s most accessed online mental health service for young people, parents, and carers. 2.6 million Australians turned to ReachOut for support in 2021-22.
ReachOut’s PeerChat uses the power of lived experience to help young people, with their peer workers having experience with their own mental health challenges and being on their own journey to recovery who have decided to use their experience to support others.
All peer workers have undergone ReachOut training and have expertise in facilitating safe, respectful, non-judgmental conversations that are anonymous and confidential.
100% online and designed specifically for – and with – young people, ReachOut lets young people connect on their terms at any time from anywhere with a focus on prevention and early-intervention.
ReachOut offers one-to-one support from experienced peer workers, to online communities, as well as tips, stories and resources.
ReachOut has been a pioneer and leader in digital mental health service delivery since it burst onto the internet almost 25 years ago.
David Spriggs, Infoxchange CEO, said: “We congratulate ReachOut on winning the ‘Not-for-profit Tech Innovator of the Year’ award for their PeerChat service.”
About the Australian Not-for-Profit Technology Awards
The Australian Not-for-Profit Technology Awards are a national technology awards program run annually by Infoxchange.
The awards recognise the best in technology innovation and excellence by organisations and individuals supporting the Australian not-for-profit sector.
Judged by a panel spanning the not-for-profit, for-purpose and private sectors, they acknowledge the accomplishments of these organisations and individuals and the improved product and/or service offerings brought to the not-for-profit sector and broader community through technology.
