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Anxiety disorder can be a debilitating condition for those who experience it. Data indicate that 40% of adults suffer from moderate to high levels of anxiety, while 20% of adults who visit their GPs annually for non-mental health issues often have episodes of anxiety disorder.

We are collaborating with Big Health to further test their app, Daylight, which helps patients over the age of 18 manage anxiety. Daylight is a digital therapeutic tool offering a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) structured programme through a dedicated app, enabling patients to access immediate support for managing worry and anxiety.

Juvaria Hassan, Project Manager at Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber, said: “New health digital technologies can really make a difference to the lives of patients. We are thrilled to be involved in this initiative and to actively help engage patients using Daylight.

Patient experience is fundamental to designing services that deliver effective care. Insights gathered from patients with lived experience of using an innovation are invaluable. They provide a better understanding of how the technology affects patients, the challenges they encounter, and the obstacles they face in accessing the care they need”.

The app empowers patients to take control of their recovery, employing science-based techniques to help them better understand their anxiety and develop new coping strategies in their daily life. Daylight provides clinicians with an alternative treatment for anxiety to traditional medicines, reducing the need for longer-term prescriptions of anxiolytic medications.

Daylight is being offered for free to patients and GP practices across South Yorkshire as part of an economic evaluation partnership led by Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber, YHEC, the South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board and Big Health. Initially patients will have access to Daylight for 15 months, with an additional 12 months of follow-up access.

Following a successful rollout in Scotland, fully funded by the NHS, 71% of users experienced clinical improvements in anxiety and 57% reported improvements in overall mood. One user shared “Even the first day I used Daylight, my outlook completely changed. I finally felt like I’d found something that worked for me and was going to keep working”.

We will also work closely with our colleagues at the South Yorkshire Innovation Hub, a partnership between South Yorkshire Integrated Care System and Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber, ensuring that we engage with the right stakeholders across the system.

For further information about this initiative please email sy.innovation@yhahsn.com

Find out more about Daylight