By Forum Staff
Six months after launching “NYC Teenspace ” — a free tele-mental health service available to all New York City teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 years old —Mayor Eric Adams and City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan on Thursday updated New Yorkers on the program’s progress, announcing that more than 6,800 teenagers have already signed up for the service.
Early data shows that 65 percent of users reported improvement in their mental health and provides valuable insight into teenagers’ reasons for seeking help. Additionally, underserved neighborhoods, including Brownsville and East New York, led the city in signups while 80 percent of users identified as Black, Hispanic, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI), bi-racial, or Native American. NYC Teenspace — created in partnership with online therapy platform Talkspace — allows City teens to connect with a licensed therapist through phone, video, and text on any mobile device completely free-of-charge.
NYC Teenspace provides young people with valuable resources to bolster mental health, including a coping skills toolkit, and access to a licensed therapist by phone, video calls, or messaging sessions, giving teenagers control over how they engage. The virtual setting takes place on a secure, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliant platform and is designed to reduce barriers to care.
The city and Talkspace designed the service with direct input from New York City teenagers, convening focus groups to best understand their mental health needs and to build a platform that is as useful and responsive as possible to those using the platform. By leveraging telehealth tools, this approach also reduces physical and financial burdens for young people.
Early results show that between the program’s Nov. 15, 2023 launch and April 1, 2024:
- 6,800 teenagers signed up for NYC Teenspace.
- Nearly 60 percent of NYC Teenspace users identified as Black or Hispanic.
- Eighty percent of users identified as Black, Hispanic, AAPI, bi-racial, or Native American.
- Neighborhoods that led the city in signups are: 11212 – Brownsville (Brooklyn); 11208 – East New York (Brooklyn); 11236 – Canarsie (Brooklyn); 10456 – Morrisania (Bronx)10467 – Norwood (Bronx)
- Teenage girls were more likely to seek help. Almost 70 percent of users identified as female, compared to roughly 23 percent who identified as male.
- More than half exclusively engaged with their therapist via messaging.
- Early results showed 65 percent of users already reported an improvement, with this group growing steadily.
The most frequently cited reasons teenagers gave for using the platform included: feeling down or depressed, improving relationships (which was first among girls), becoming their best self, anxiety (which was first among boys), and difficulties at home or school. When it came to engaging in therapy, more than 42 percent of users utilized both live video sessions and messaging. Four percent of users engaged in live video sessions only, while 54 percent exclusively used messaging.
DOHMH and Talkspace are actively working with partners across government and on the ground to promote NYC Teenspace. Representatives have connected with members of the school community and with partner agencies that work with young people outside of school settings.
