ABOUT US ![]()
Everything we do, we do to help people
lead healthier, happier lives.
We help people manage
their own health by providing behaviour change tools, real-time peer and professional
support and tapping into what motivates that person. For the user, it’s like having your coach, care-team and support crew
in your pocket via your mobile phone.
Social Code is a start up based in Wellington, NZ & California, USA. Check us out!
THE PROBLEM
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Teenagers and young
people experiencing depression, whether a result of bullying or other, find it
hard to reach out for help even when they’re desperate for it.
Feedback from our focus
groups suggest there are several reasons for this: they don’t want to admit they need it; don’t know who to contact, or they feel guilty because they don’t know why they feel this way. One thing came through clearly, they can’t always articulate what they are going through. They feel
incapable of doing anything. Yet they desperately want help.
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THE STORY
It all started with two mothers who were using our GoalPost Quit Smoking app. They
asked us if we had something similar to the GoalPost ‘Panic Button’, that their teenagers, who were experiencing depression, could use as a simple emergency help call.
That was all the
encouragement we needed, so we explored ways we could make it happen.
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We’ve run research through
focus groups in the US and gained feedback from youth mental health organisations in the US, UK and NZ. That research and feedback helped inform the design of Code Blue:
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What We Need
Code Blue empowers
anyone who
has been touched by depression, either personally or through a friend or family member
who has experienced it.
We have self-funded all research and
design of Code Blue. We now need US$25,000 to help cover the development costs of an iOS and Android prototype and promotion to people experiencing depression worldwide.
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If we don’t reach our
funding goal we will put all money raised towards the development of the app
and look at more organic ways of making the people who need it most, aware
that it exists. If we exceed our goal (yay!) we'll put the money towards further enhancing the app based on users feedback and promoting the app to as many people as possible.
Help young people with
depression right now, by donating.
We can’t do this without you.
The Impact
Everyone knows someone
who has experienced depression. The
World Health Organisation estimates that by the year 2020, depression will be
the second most common cause of ill health and premature death worldwide. It’s
estimated that depression increases the risk of suicide by 20 times.
We know that people
experiencing depression find it hard to reach out for help. Code Blue allows them
to alert their self-selected support crew with just the touch of a button.
No explanations, no guilt, just a quick heads up that they need your help.
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While we aren’t
suggesting that this app is a solve-all solution, we think it could become a
valuable tool to help young people reach out for help from people they trust,
when they are feeling at their worst. By building a prototype and testing it, we'll be able to improve it and potentially add in additional features such as location-based support services.
Code Blue will be FREE to everyone, everywhere, always.
Other Ways You Can Help
Even if you can’t help financially we would
love it if you could spread the word about our campaign through your
communities and networks.
You can share this via the Indiegogo links
just under our video.
Every little bit helps and we can’t do it
without your support.
Thanks!
Data Sources - http://www.teenhelp.com/teen-depression/depression-statistics.html, BioMed Central "Global depression
statistics." ScienceDaily. 26 July 2011. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725202240.htm,
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/depression-in-children-and-adolescents/index.shtml,
http://www.depression.org.nz/depression
& http://www.who.int
