Norman Lamb has been talking to the Times (£)  about different ways of helping children and teenagers with Depression. This could include accessing therapy via an internet app. This would augment, to replace traditional face to face therapy:

MPs on the health select committee said this month that mental health services for children and teenagers were inadequate from prevention to crisis care, as they reported increasing concerns over cyberbullying and self-harm websites.

Mr Lamb wants to use online tools to solve some of these problems, including computerised cognitive behavioural therapy, online counselling and peer support networks for the mentally ill.

“If you’re a teenager and your world revolves around digital access, we must make sure you get access to therapy online. So these programmes are being developed. We’ve got a taskforce looking at how we can modernise children and young people’s mental health and that’s one of the key elements to it,” he told The Times.

“What I want to achieve is a much more seamless service that allows you access online, face to face or over the telephone, whichever is appropriate.”

Some programmes had already been shown to work, he said. “These platforms are evidence-based so the risk is very low that they’re not appropriate. Some people may need more than that so you have to have access to a gradation of different type of service.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat conference also looked at the issue of young people’s mental health provision, with Alison McInnes leading calls for improvement. At the moment, young people who need hospital treatment can be treated either at home or in adult wards. The Press and Journal reports:

Ms McInnes said the lack of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) beds in the north was “shocking” and “unacceptable”.

“Young people should be treated in an age-appropriate environment and that is not possible in the north and north-east,” she added.

“The fact this motion was unanimously backed tells the Scottish Government it is not good enough and they need to do everything they can to ensure that mental health provision for children and young people is person-centred and appropriate for people in their local area.

Ms McInnes said a decision to invest £15million in services over three years was “a drop in the ocean” and SNP ministers must increase investment and treat mental health in the same way as physical health.

“If we don’t treat young people properly, appropriately and timeously we are just stacking up problems for the future – we are really failing people.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings