Nicholas Jonathan
The Inspire Foundation, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Perspect Public Health. 2010 Mar;130(2):86-90. doi: 10.1177/1757913908101797.
With large numbers of young people experiencing mental health difficulties but not seeking help, there is a need to develop not only innovative but also well-promoted strategies that are appealing to this population and reduce barriers to help seeking.
Reach Out! (http://www.reachout.com.au) is presented as a case study, demonstrating an internet-based initiative that sucessfully incorporates technology and social branding to provide a service that promotes the mental health and wellbeing of young people in Australia aged 16 to 25.
With over seven million visits since its launch in 1998 and one in three young Australians aware of the website, Reach Out! is a trusted service that young people in Australia use when going through a tough time. Online user profiling suggests that after visiting Reach Out!, 38% of young people contact a mental health professional. The implications of these results will be discussed.
Reach Out! can serve as a model for the social sector to utilize technology and social branding to enhance existing community-based services and promote the mental health and wellbeing of young people.
鉴于大量年轻人存在心理健康问题却未寻求帮助，不仅需要制定创新策略，还需要大力推广这些策略，使其吸引这一人群并减少寻求帮助的障碍。
以“伸出援手！”（http://www.reachout.com.au）为例进行研究，展示一项基于互联网的倡议，该倡议成功整合了技术和社会品牌推广，为澳大利亚16至25岁的年轻人提供促进其心理健康和幸福的服务。
自1998年推出以来，“伸出援手！”网站访问量超过700万次，三分之一的澳大利亚年轻人知晓该网站，它是澳大利亚年轻人在经历困难时期会使用的可信赖服务。在线用户分析表明，访问“伸出援手！”网站后，38%的年轻人会联系心理健康专业人员。将讨论这些结果的影响。
“伸出援手！”可作为社会部门利用技术和社会品牌推广来加强现有社区服务并促进年轻人心理健康和幸福的典范。
