In Cheshire and Merseyside, the mental health crisis has reached critical levels in recent years, with the growing demand for support services far surpassing the available resources. As more people than ever seek help, local health services are buckling under immense pressure, leading to longer wait times and a worsening of mental health conditions for many. The strain is palpable, leaving many in this region without the timely care they desperately need.
Recent NHS data paints a sobering picture of the escalating crisis, showing a dramatic rise in individuals across Cheshire and Merseyside seeking mental health support. The COVID-19 pandemic has only amplified these challenges, intensifying anxiety, depression, and stress-related conditions. In this region, an estimated one in four adults is grappling with mental health concerns—a statistic that mirrors the national average, but with a more alarming upward trajectory in recent years.
A particularly urgent issue in Cheshire and Merseyside is the extended wait times for specialist mental health services. While the NHS standard recommends access to psychological therapies, such as talking therapies, within 28 days, the reality here is far bleaker. Many are left waiting several months before receiving help, during which time their conditions often deteriorate. This delay can have devastating consequences, increasing the risk of harmful behaviours such as self-harm and substance misuse.
The growing mental health crisis in Cheshire and Merseyside underscores the urgent need for expanded resources and immediate action to prevent further strain on individuals and the wider community.
ORCHA is on a mission to safeguard individuals by evaluating and endorsing mental health apps that meet the highest standards. In the sensitive realm of mental health, ORCHA’s goal is to protect users from potentially harmful or ineffective apps, ensuring they only access trusted, reliable digital solutions.
By curating a diverse range of mental health apps, ORCHA helps to make mental health support more accessible for people in Cheshire and Merseyside. From the comfort of their own homes, users can access vital mental health tools, breaking down barriers like long waiting times for therapy, geographical limitations, and the stigma often associated with seeking help. These apps cover everything from stress management to therapy support, providing immediate resources for those in need.
ORCHA collaborates closely with healthcare professionals across Cheshire and Merseyside, including social prescribers, general practitioners, and local mental health teams. This partnership allows professionals to recommend evidence-based mental health apps as part of their patients’ care plans. Integrating these digital tools into clinical settings enhances treatment outcomes, offering patients support between appointments or during long waiting periods.
From January to August 2024, over 1,000 mental health apps were recommended by healthcare professionals via the ORCHA platform in Cheshire and Merseyside—demonstrating the region’s growing reliance on digital tools to address mental health and well-being. These recommendations span various needs, from stress management and anxiety relief to mindfulness and community-based support, ensuring that individuals receive targeted assistance based on their specific challenges.
During this period, more than 400 mental health apps were downloaded through the system, underlining the critical role that digital support now plays in empowering people to manage their mental health. These figures highlight how integral apps have become in the mental health care pathway, providing timely, accessible support to those who may otherwise be struggling.
Dr. Tom Micklewright, a General Practitioner in Cheshire and Merseyside, shared his perspective: “When a patient comes to see me about their mental health, the options can often feel limited. Waiting times for talking therapies are long, and many patients are hesitant to begin medication. Mental health apps offer a powerful alternative—they’re in the patient’s pocket, ready whenever and wherever they’re needed. For many of my patients, apps have been the first step on their journey to recovery.”
At ORCHA, we’re proud to play a crucial role in this vital support network, ensuring that the people of Cheshire and Merseyside have access to safe, effective, and user-friendly mental health apps. Our rigorous review process guarantees that every recommended app meets high standards, giving users the confidence to embrace digital tools in their mental health journey.
Looking ahead, ORCHA is committed to enhancing the quality and accessibility of digital health solutions, recognizing their potential to reduce wait times and provide a valuable layer of care at all stages of mental health recovery. As we move forward, we’ll continue ensuring that the apps we recommend are not only safe but also tailored to the diverse mental health needs of the Cheshire and Merseyside community, helping even more people find the right digital tools to enhance their well-being
Sussex NHS Community Foundation Trust – A pioneering leader in healthcare who recognised the growing importance of solutions in enhancing patient care
Taking a bold, forward thinking move they have integrated the trusts professional-facing app library into their SystmOne portal.
“We know our patients are eager to use apps to enhance their health and wellbeing—whether they’re awaiting treatment, following a care pathway, or managing their recovery post-discharge. Since the NHS App Library was decommissioned in 2021, we’ve lacked a safe, reliable way to recommend effective self-management tools. The ORCHA formulary integration with SystmOne changes that entirely, providing a new level of professional accountability and audit that is critical for modern patient care,” says Antonia Brown, Chief Nursing Information Officer, SCFT.
The primary goal of this integration was to empower healthcare professionals at Sussex NHS Community Foundation Trust with a groundbreaking ability, to recommend trusted, clinically-validated health apps directly to patients via the SystmOne portal.
This innovative capability was envisioned to revolutionize the treatment process and improve patient outcomes, by providing seamless access to powerful digital tools that can dramatically improve how patients manage their health. The trust aims to elevate patient outcomes and boost engagement in self-care.
Integrating ORCHA’s formulary into the system wasn’t just about adding a new tool—it was a game-changing step toward reimagining how healthcare professionals and patients interact in the digital age. This strategic leap forward is set to transform daily workflows, embedding digital health solutions into patient care pathways with ease and efficiency.
The results? Better patient engagement, greater adherence to treatment plans, and significantly improved health outcomes. Through this bold initiative, Sussex NHS Community Foundation Trust is positioning itself as a trailblazer in digital health innovation within the NHS, setting a powerful standard for other healthcare providers to follow.
The integration kicked off with a series of collaborative meetings between the Trust’s Integration Lead and our Technical Architect at ORCHA. These sessions were laser-focused on identifying potential hurdles and ensuring the solution would meet every user need without compromising on data security or regulatory compliance.
The design phase was all about precision. A detailed blueprint was crafted to seamlessly embed ORCHA’s formulary into the SystmOne portal. The goal: to allow healthcare professionals instant access to search and recommend trusted health apps—all without ever leaving the portal. Every data flow diagram and integration point was meticulously mapped to guarantee smooth, secure data exchanges, backed by rock-solid user authentication.
Using agile methodologies, we entered the testing phase in full collaboration. The Trust took the lead, running both automated and user acceptance tests with clinicians. Meanwhile, we conducted rigorous security testing to ensure everything aligned with GDPR and other key regulations. This dynamic approach made for an integration that wasn’t just secure—it was robust, intuitive, and perfectly tailored for healthcare professionals.
Healthcare professionals can now empower their patients like never before by recommending personalized health apps directly during consultations, inspiring patients to take charge of their own health and well-being.
Thanks to the seamless integration, professionals no longer need to navigate away from the SystmOne portal, saving valuable time.
A streamlined, efficient process that frees up more time for patient care.
The feedback from healthcare professionals has been overwhelmingly positive. They appreciate the ease of access to trusted digital health solutions, which are now just a click away. “Having single sign-on via the patient’s electronic record (SystmOne) to directly recommend apps will be a game-changer for our clinicians. It eliminates the need to switch platforms, saving time and effort. Plus, all recommendations are stored in one place, allowing us to avoid duplication and making follow-ups much simpler,” says Mel Briers, Digital Nurse Specialist at SCFT.
ORCHA Health proudly announces the renewal of its Cyber Essentials certification, reaffirming its ongoing commitment to robust cybersecurity practices.
The Cyber Essentials certification is a UK government-backed scheme designed to help organisations protect themselves against common online threats. This renewal underscores ORCHA Health’s dedication to continuously safeguarding its systems, data, and clients from cyber threats.
“Renewing the Cyber Essentials certification is a testament to our enduring commitment to cybersecurity,” Liz Ashall-Payne, Founding CEO of ORCHA Health. “It demonstrates our ongoing dedication to protecting the sensitive information entrusted to us by our clients and partners, and our proactive approach to maintaining the highest standards in cybersecurity.”
The renewal process involved a thorough re-evaluation of ORCHA Health’s cybersecurity measures, including assessments of the company’s firewall configuration, secure configuration of systems, user access control, malware protection, and patch management. By meeting the stringent requirements of the Cyber Essentials scheme once again, ORCHA Health has proven its continued capability to defend against a wide range of cyber-attacks.
This renewal not only enhances ORCHA Health’s reputation as a trusted provider of digital health solutions but also provides reassurance to clients and stakeholders about the company’s stringent and evolving security protocols. With the increasing prevalence of cyber threats, maintaining the Cyber Essentials certification is a crucial step in ensuring the ongoing integrity and security of ORCHA Health’s digital health services.
ORCHA Health remains committed to continuous improvement and will regularly review and update its cybersecurity measures to stay ahead of emerging threats and best practices in the industry. The company looks forward to leveraging this renewed certification to further strengthen its cybersecurity posture and build greater trust with its clients and partners.
For more information about ORCHA Health, please visit https://www.orchahealth.com or contact hello@orchahealth.com.
Founded in 2015, ORCHA (the Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Apps) has grown rapidly to become the world’s leading health app evaluation and distribution organisation. Its mission is to get safe, effective healthcare to millions more people across the globe by harnessing digital technology.
With a strong focus on quality, innovation and customer satisfaction, ORCHA Health works extensively with the NHS, charities and social care providers in the UK, digital health suppliers, and with 11 other governments globally.
Committed to excellence and integrity, ORCHA Health conducts reviews on health apps, measuring each against 350 tough standards and creates app libraries which health and care staff can use as a source of the highest quality digital health support.
ORCHA Health proudly announces it has received certification to ISO 9001:2015 and ISO/IEC 27001:2022 standards, reinforcing its commitment to excellence and security.
The ISO 9001:2015 certification is an internationally recognised standard for quality management systems. It demonstrates ORCHA Health’s dedication to consistently providing products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements, enhancing customer satisfaction through effective system application and continual improvement.
In addition to this achievement, ORCHA Health has also been awarded the ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification. This certification highlights the company’s commitment to maintaining and improving an effective information security management system (ISMS). By achieving ISO/IEC 27001:2022, ORCHA Health assures its clients and stakeholders of its robust security protocols to protect sensitive information and mitigate risks associated with data breaches and cyber threats.
“Receiving both the ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certifications is a testament to our team’s hard work and dedication to maintaining the highest standards in quality and security,” said Liz Ashall-Payne, Founding CEO of ORCHA Health. “These certifications not only validate our processes but also reflect our commitment to our clients and partners, ensuring we deliver the best possible innovative solutions while safeguarding their information.”
The certification process involved a rigorous evaluation of ORCHA Health’s management systems, including comprehensive audits by UKAS accredited external bodies. The company underwent thorough assessments of its quality management procedures and information security practices to ensure compliance with the stringent requirements of both standards.
With these certifications, ORCHA Health joins an elite group of organisations worldwide that have demonstrated excellence in both quality management and information security. This dual achievement positions the company as a trusted and reliable partner, capable of delivering superior products and services while maintaining the highest levels of information security.
ORCHA Health remains committed to continual improvement and will regularly review and update its management systems to align with the evolving standards and best practices in the industry. The company looks forward to leveraging these certifications to further enhance its operational efficiency, customer satisfaction, and competitive edge.
For more information about ORCHA Health, please visit https://www.orchahealth.com or contact hello@orchahealth.com.
Founded in 2015, ORCHA (the Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Apps) has grown rapidly to become the world’s leading health app evaluation and distribution organisation. Its mission is to get safe, effective healthcare to millions more people across the globe by harnessing digital technology.
With a strong focus on quality, innovation and customer satisfaction, ORCHA Health works extensively with the NHS, charities and social care providers in the UK, digital health suppliers, and with 11 other governments globally.
Committed to excellence and integrity, ORCHA Health conducts reviews on health apps, measuring each against 350 tough standards and creates app libraries which health and care staff can use as a source of the highest quality digital health support.