A web-based version of our Digital Futures in Mind report is now available for anyone interested in (a more web-friendly read about) the politics, law, & ethics of tech experiments in the mental health context https://t.co/iV4hbcRjWO

"Flaws in QLD's mental health system exposed" | A Current Affair. Coverage of involuntary psychiatric intervention of a teenager in Queensland. Mental Health Commissioner reportedly states that it is not clear why involuntary interventions are increasing.

"Changes are needed to policy, laws, attitudes, human and financial resources, training and research, open access to data about coercive practices, and above all readiness and capacity to work with people with lived experience and their families." @Helen_Herrman

"The World Psychiatric Association calls for action on supporting alternatives to coercion in mental health care - Die World Psychiatric Association fordert zum Handeln auf, um Alternativen zu Zwangsmaßnahmen in der psychiatrischen Versorgung zu fördern" https://t.co/my4CvP11r2

🚨 BREAKING: Yesterday, SEVEN (!) lawsuits were filed against OpenAI over ChatGPT-assisted suicide and other claims. Psychological manipulation is cited in all cases. 😱 Is an AI-led mental health epidemic emerging? Yesterday, the Social Media Victims Law Center and Tech

"We conclude that AI cannot sufficiently replicate affect or capture the richness of human experience that is central to qualitative research, and offer recommendations for future researchers to anticipate and check for AI as an unwelcome research participant."

“This paper provides… evidence that some AI companions use emotionally charged exit behaviors to extend engagement… when users intend to leave… [showing] increased engagement can arise from psychological pressure at the moment of exit, not from genuine enjoyment.”

New "Hart Studies in Disability, Law, and Justice", with series editors: Anna Lawson, Beverley Clough, and Eilionóir Flynn, creates a 'platform for pioneering research [in] disability law and disability studies.' Really looking forward to this series.

"Duggal said it was evident that repeated access of online services might become a substitute for or barrier to someone seeking an in-person assessment, particularly for people with severe depression or social anxiety."

"Such services play an important role in providing brief intervention to those suffering from mild to moderate mental distress. They are not designed to manage acute mental health or crisis situations involving significant or imminent risk," the coroner said.

NZ: "A coroner has called for greater public awareness of the scope and limitations of online mental health support services. Meenal Duggal has released her findings into the 2023 suicide of a young man in Lincoln near Christchurch."

The @UQLaw Pro Bono Centre, as part of its NDIS Appeals Project, created a database to collect data from NDIS appeal cases from 2014 to now. Great resource to facilitate analysis of the outcomes of NDIS appeals to the Administrative Review Tribunal

“The impact of PhD studies on mental health—a longitudinal population study” - sobering research on psychosocial risks in PhD programs internationally (with an exception in health sciences, perhaps due to simultaneous practice & job security?)

🚨 BREAKING: California did it AGAIN and became the first U.S. state to regulate AI companions. Will ChatGPT be covered by this law, even though it's not marketed as an "AI companion"? What you need to know: SB 243 focuses on protecting children interacting with AI companion

"Current lawsuits involving chatbots and suicide victims show that the door of liability is opening for ChatGPT and other bots. A case involving Google’s https://t.co/TRftBYpiD2 bots is a prime example." https://t.co/UmBmuwL9Bd

Partial update to @aihw data on involuntary treatment in Australian public mental health services released today. Variation across the country is striking: in the NT, 87% of hospitalisations in acute programs were involuntary in 2022-23. In WA it was 26%.

“The Federal Court has given a record $2.2 million civil penalty to an NDIS provider, following the death of a 38-year-old Queensland man who wandered onto a motorway. “

“UberTherapy is the essential guide to the rise of digital therapy ... Arguing for the irreplaceable value of human therapists, this book offers a roadmap to preserve real therapy in an increasingly digital world.” New book by Elizabeth Cotton, Leicester U https://t.co/xLsrloB6a0

Interesting that the errors were only identified after academics noticed and reported that they had been mis-cited. Academics may wish to set up alerts to citations of their own work to help spot and report this sort of thing.

"artificial intelligence had been used in the creation of a $440,000 report littered with errors including three nonexistent academic references and a made-up quote from a Federal Court judgement."

‘A new report from the Royal Australian College of GPs shows that mental health is the main reason why Australians visit their doctor.’ https://t.co/gsK9NUYvtY