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McKinsey & Company Inc.

07/15/2025 | News release | Distributed by Public on 07/15/2025 14:37

McKinsey Health Institute and global partners explore AI's role in closing the mental healthcare gap

July 15, 2025 More than half of all people will experience a mental health challenge in their lifetime. Yet, when people seek help, there's often no one to turn to. In high-income countries, there are just ~13 psychiatrists per 100,000 people. In low- and middle-income countries, home to 80 percent of the world's population, support is even harder to find.

For over a decade, a powerful solution has been gaining traction: task sharing. In this model, nonspecialist providers-such as community health workers-are trained to deliver evidence-based mental health interventions. However, scaling these programs while maintaining the quality of care remains a challenge.

A new path forward: AI as a training partner and coaching tool

This month, the McKinsey Health Institute (MHI), Grand Challenges Canada (GCC), and Google released a free, open-access guide to help mental health organizations integrate AI into task-sharing programs. Developed with input from more than 25 experts across AI, task sharing, mental health, policy, and funding, the guide details how AI can support and expand the reach of mental health care globally.

The field guide explores the promising use of AI-powered provider training, among many other topics. One example use case shows how developing tools that use AI could provide trainees with simulations of real-world scenarios of mental health conversations. Such a tool could also be built to provide trainees with tailored feedback.

"We know the use of AI in mental health care is still emerging, and we're approaching it with humility and curiosity," said Dr. Nicole Bardikoff, Associate Director, Global Mental Health, Grand Challenges Canada. "Our goal is to support organizations exploring ethical, practical ways to strengthen community-based mental health-especially where needs are greatest. This field guide is an important start, and we'll keep learning and evolving alongside our partners."

We know the use of AI in mental health care is still emerging, and we're approaching it with humility and curiosity

Dr. Nicole Bardikoff, Associate Director, Global Mental Health, Grand Challenges Canada

This approach has already been put into practice. For example, The Trevor Project-a nonprofit organization supporting LGBTQ+ youth-partnered with Google.org to build an AI-powered training bot that helped train over 1,000 crisis counselors. By simulating realistic, emotionally charged conversations in a safe environment, it helps better prepare counselors to face similar situations in real life.

Kana Enomoto, Director of Brain Health at the McKinsey Health Institute, adds: "Whether it's a midwife in Zambia, a grandmother in Zimbabwe, or a nutritionist in Chile, we're helping task-sharing organizations equip the people already trusted in their communities to offer real support-and giving them the tools to grow and reach more people."

Beyond training: real-time support and smarter systems

AI can also support care providers in their interactions with clients. Technology, such as natural language processing, can transcribe sessions in real time and provide coaching suggestions and proposed prompts for providers.

Megan Jones Bell, Director of Consumer and Mental Health at Google, adds: "We believe that AI can help organizations scale mental health programs by standardizing training and reducing its costs, all while retaining and elevating essential human involvement."

More generally, the field guide includes information about how AI can improve training, supervision, triage, and documentation; highlights real-world examples; outlines success factors for implementing AI into task-sharing programs; and helps organizations evaluate their readiness to adopt AI solutions.

A shared mission, scaled by technology

"This open-access resource is a great example of MHI's mission to catalyze investment and action where needed most," says Erica Coe, McKinsey partner and global executive director of MHI. "We believe it's about scaling what works-and doing it thoughtfully."

Read the full guide and explore how to scale mental health access through AI here .

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