Feelings Foundation

A shiny, metallic heart shape with swirling, elongated edges and a gradient color effect, set against a white background.

Digital mental health programs for autistic people.

Team Size:
1
Location:
Australia
Founders:
Michelle Wong
Program(s):

The Problem

Mathew was a 5 year old with the neurodevelopmental condition (NDC) of autism. He could not sit with other children because he was too anxious. He would get frustrated and run out of the classroom. Over time, Mathew developed skills to understand and regulate his emotions. Mathew is now 25 years old, about to graduate from university, has a full-time job, and his first girlfriend. The therapy support given to Mathew is the foundation for the Feelings Program. Twenty years of research and development at The Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network (SCHN) shows the Feelings Program improves emotion skills and mental health for children with NDCs. Despite the positive impacts for children, there are significant challenges to the widespread dissemination of the Feelings Program. Please see the application section “Is there anything else we should know?” for how Mathew’s story has inspired the vision for the Feelings Program and a full description of the challenges to dissemination.

The Solution

4 key levers will accelerate the dissemination of the Feelings Program to improve lives at mass scale: 1. Establish the Feelings Foundation to promote and distribute the Feelings Program internationally, optimising scalability. See the application section “Is there anything else we should know?” for more info. 2. Digitisation will deliver broader distribution and universal access. Digital Feelings Program will be agile, nimble and enable continuous improvement for efficiencies, capabilities and new languages. 3. Cultural and language translation studies will ensure the Feelings Program meets the needs of children from diverse backgrounds. In 2023, pilot studies of Hong Kong and Malaysian Feelings Program versions were completed. 4. Partnerships with champions in different countries will drive dissemination in local communities, connecting Australian expertise and innovation with community practitioners, enabling better access to early intervention and achieving population-wide impacts.