Meet the innovator: Kerstyn Comley, Tellmi

Tellmi is a social enterprise innovation which aims to address the growing demand for mental health services and tackle health inequalities for young people. It is a digital peer support app available launched in 2017 by psychologist Suzi Godson PhD and engineer Kerstyn Comley PhD. Kersytn explains how Tellmi works.

Tell us about the innovation. The what and the why?

Tellmi is a scalable digital peer support solution that provides both early intervention and crisis support. Multi-award-winning and NHS-commissioned, the Tellmi service delivers pre-moderated peer and counsellor support via native (IOS and Android) and web apps. It has been designed with the input of over 6,000 young people and has safely supported over 85,000 young people since launch in 2017.

Our anonymous, pre-moderated and age-banded peer support platform provides a safe space in which people can help themselves by helping each other. People discuss their challenges and provide each other with reciprocal support, advice and empathy.

Human moderators risk assess all posts. High-risk posts are redirected to counsellors who intervene preemptively to ensure young people get the support they need, when they need it.

For those needing more help on an ongoing basis, we have pioneered the development of text-based Solution Focused Therapy.

The app also features a Directory of over 700 crisis and specialist services, and psychoeducation and self-care tools, which can be filtered by topic and postcode.

With no need for referral, no assessments and no waiting list, Tellmi provides accessible support for all people, but is a particularly important service for those who face barriers to accessing NHS mental health services.

Which health innovation networks have you been supported by?

Tellmi has worked with the Health Innovation Network in South London, the South West (SWAHSN) in Somerset and Tellmi co-CEO Suzi Godson is an NHS Innovation Fellow. Our experience working with the health innovation networks has helped us understand the regional NHS landscape and access support for marketing, evaluation and clinical support.

Tellmi has recently been accepted into the East Midlands Digital Health Accelerator. Their support will help us gain greater market access, undertake more evaluation, and increase our understanding of what the NHS is searching for.

Their support is timely given that we have recently been awarded a multi-year contract to deliver a digital mental health service in Leicestershire, Leicester & Rutland, and are keen to gain a greater understanding of the local area and its neighbouring ICBs.

What’s been the toughest obstacle to date?

When we launched, we could see there was good academic research to support digital peer support for mental health, but there were only a few examples in operation in the adult space and nothing in the youth space. We have, essentially, had to create the market for pre-moderated, anonymous and evidence-based digital peer support from scratch and convince the NHS that our novel approach was both safe and scalable. To do this, we had to build a product and develop a service that was attractive and effective for users, and simultaneously generate enough evidence to demonstrate to the NHS system that digital peer support works.

What are your hopes for the future?

Having been commissioned by the NHS in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR), Somerset, and Berkshire West, we are aiming to be awarded contracts by more NHS ICBs and reach more people in need of accessible mental health support. While much of our focus has been on young people aged 11-25, our recent commission by LLR will see us reach a wider population by delivering an all-age service, which is something we hope to replicate in other locations.

We continue to evidence Tellmi’s effectiveness and are hoping to complete our first small RCT in the next 18 months. We are constantly thinking of innovative ways to measure our socio-economic impact and believe that our rigour creates a benchmark for other digital mental health services.

We have had several expressions of interest from the US and hope to join an American accelerator to help us pursue international expansion in 2025.

What’s the best part of your job?

It makes me feel incredibly proud to know that we have helped so many people who are struggling with poor mental health. It’s clear from our data the impact we are having and if ever work is hard or draining I simply have to read posts tagged with ‘Gratitude’ to lift my spirits. Like this one

‘I downloaded this app over three years ago, and it has helped me through some really tough times. This is a thank you post to the developers of this app and all of you lovely people who take the time to write responses and to support each other’

What are your three pieces of advice for budding innovators?

Find a good co-founder. Tellmi wouldn’t have achieved all that it has if it wasn’t for my fabulous co-founder Dr Suzi Godson. Look for someone who is different to you, can bring complementary skills and challenge your perspectives.

Always strive for simplicity. When you don’t know how to solve a problem it is tempting to throw everything at it. The job of a good innovator is to keep pairing everything back to find the simplest solution possible.

If you are hoping to work with the NHS get on some accelerator programmes like the East Midlands Digital Health Accelerator. The NHS is a complex beast and you will need all the support you can get to be successful.