Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | October 14, 2019 | Worcester Business Journal 13 students or anyone else. "ey can go to the website or to the app and get the help that they need." Over much of the past year, Pagano Media worked on the new site and the app to carry out the idea of better and broader accessibility. "It's about connecting people," said Leo Pagano, the company's strategic director, who worked on the project with Mike Duong, Pagano's program- ming lead. A student focus group suggested in- cluding an option for app users to say they're happy – not just angry, anxious or depressed – when they're checking in. In that case, the app suggests taking advantage of the positive thoughts by writing down grateful feelings, perform an act of kindness or other responses. Users can suggest other actions, or affirm or reject ones that did or didn't work for them. "It's kind of like a diary of sorts," Pagano said. e new website is planned to eventually include a forum allowing students to talk to one another about mental health issues, with details still being worked out on oversight. Addressing a serious need, and changing times It's not too hard to see why more help may be needed for youth and mental health, with studies showing high – and rising – rates of anxiety and depression. e odds of adolescents suffering from clinical depression grew by 37% between 2005 and 2014, according to a Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study from 2017. A Pew Research Center poll in February found 70% of teens considering anxiety and depression a major problem among their peers – far more than bullying, drug addiction, teen pregnancy or other risks. If mental health has oen come with a stigma, Yost said it's much less the case with students these days, giving an opportunity for greater discussion around the issue. "ey've been raised in an era in which people encourage you to share things," she said. "Times have really changed." With that in mind, the Shine Initiative and Pagano went about making the app not too technical and with touches of levity. "Flatten empty aluminum cans," one tip says. "You probably won't get your nickel back for those, though." "We didn't want it to feel overly clinical," Kaelin said. "It's about the simplicity of using it, without treating the topic like it's simple." W I N F O R M A T I O N T E C H N O L O G Y F O C U S Worcester Business Journal WBJ Worcester Business Journal Know Central Mass. Business Stay informed, engaged and connected with a print + digital subscription to the Worcester Business Journal. You'll receive bi-weekly issues, special publications and full online access. Subscribe online: wbjournal.com/subscribe, Or call: (508) 755-8004 Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018) Millions of American children have been diagnosed with anxiety or depression, and not all have received treatment: Mental health, in youth 7.1% or around 4.4 million, of children age 3 to 17 have been diagnosed with anxiety. 3.2% or around 1.9 million, have been diagnosed with depression. 78.1% of those with depression received treatment. 59.3% of those with anxiety received treatment. 73.8% of those with depression also had anxiety, and 47.2% also had behavior problems. The Shine Initiative's app, which became available this fall, was designed by Worcester's Pagano Media to help users respond to their emotions or find help if needed. Does your website look like it was built during the 1980s? Let us give it a 21st century redesign! hello, world_ 508-616-2042 clientservices@wakefly.com

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