A team at Ulster University and the Cork Institute of Technology has jointly released a new mental health chatbot app to help those struggling during the pandemic.
There's no doubt that the Covid-19 pandemic has placed serious pressure on front-line medical services, but our mental health services have also been under particular pressure. People have been forced to move counselling sessions online or cancel them, and the pressure of lockdown is adding to an already difficult situation.
Researchers from Cork Institute of Technology and Ulster University have now joined forces to create a new app offering AI-assisted support for those with mental health needs. The "ChatPal- Your Positive Psychology ChatBot" app can provide support 24 hours per day, and its development was funded by the EU and the Northern Periphery and Arctic Programme.
It's hoped that the app will help take critical pressure off existing mental health helplines and online services, while also giving people an easier way to seek help right from their smartphones at any time. The app is designed to understand a range of issues people may be experiencing and respond with dialogue developed based on the PERMAH positive psychology framework.
Dr Raymond Bond, Reader in Data Analytics at Ulster University commented on the launch: "The ChatPal chatbot app is a computer programme that can have a very basic conversation with users and is developed using a form of artificial intelligence. It augments and extends the reach of traditional existing services without replacing these services."
The app is currently available for Android devices on the Google Play Store here and can be downloaded by going to https://bit.ly/ChatPalApp
Source: Written based on press release
