Adjunct Professor Anil Thapliyal has a passion for improving people’s health and wellbeing through the application of information communication technology seamlessly integrated within people’s health care.  He completed his postgraduate qualifications in Mental Health and Counselling field from the University of Auckland.  Based on his longstanding work with the National Depression Initiative (The Lowdown and The Journal), in New Zealand, he decided to focus on the broader e-Mental Health domain and is professionally focused on the implementation of E-Mental Health programmes and services.  As a result, his work now is at the interface of the e-Mental Health Implementation Science which involves active consideration of 1) policy imperatives (public health, Primary Care, Secondary Care), 2) service user engagement in co-design, 3) evidence based approaches (Science), 4) collaboration with the industry and 5) aligning tools within the clinical workflow of practice environment & workforce development considerations. He has advised many Government Departments in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, and the USA and has led the development of key e-Mental Health strategy work including:

1. On-line Mental Health and Addictions Strategy (2012), Department of Health and Community Services, St John’s, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada;
2. e-Mental Health in Canada (2014):  Transforming the Mental Health System Using Technology - A Briefing Document, Mental Health Commission of Canada, Ottawa, Canada;
3. Anil was also an integral part of the team developing “Advice on Innovative Technologies in e-Mental Health (2014): Briefing Paper for the National Mental Health Commission of Australia alongside Associate Professor Jane Burns, providing input on International approaches to guiding e-Mental Health, Telehealth: definition, opportunities and risks around access, Websites and telephone helplines: Medico-legal & ethical issues and e-Mental Health Records. In February 2016, Anil was invited by the World Psychiatry Association (WPA) to deliver an address in Manila, Philippines to talk about the role of online/digital technologies in patient/service user engagement, online screening, early brief interventions, , self-help, self-management and treatment in the provision of mental health care.
4. Anil has also presented to the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA) on “Technology-based Approaches to Prevention, Assessment and Treatment of Substance Use Disorders” in Vancouver.

Key Governance Roles

Chair:                      

e-Mental Health Working Group, International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (Sponsored by the Governments of the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, England, Scotland, Ireland & Sweden).

International Advisor:   

Centre for Applied Research and Evaluation International Foundation (CAREIF), Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, England;

Advisor:                         

Joint Advisory Group, National Depression Initiative, Ministry of Health, and Health Promotion Agency, Wellington.