More than half of New Zealanders will experience mental health issues in their lifetime, according to the Mental Health Foundation. The current support services on offer often fail to meet the needs of those affected.

There's a significant gap in the industry for accessible platforms and applications that could provide much-needed assistance.

Michael Hardy and Ben Martin, fourth-year engineering students at the University of Auckland's Faculty of Engineering, specialising in Electrical, Computer, & Software Engineering, want to help change that.

Their Final Year Project, digitalising a mental health tool called “The Gift Box”, is driven by a passion for creating better mental health support and technological innovation through engineering.

Michael and Ben, who initially thought engineering was mainly about "bridges and roads," discovered how broad the programme was during their first year.

Michael, who had "no clue what I wanted to do," found his love for software engineering through a programming class,

“I had no previous experience with software, but there is so much support and help along the way that got me to where I am today. It’s the ultimate application of problem-solving.”

Ben, who initially thought Civil Engineering was the only option, discovered his passion for software in the same class,

"It really opened my eyes. I had never properly been exposed to it before; it was an option I hadn’t even considered pursuing."

The pair are currently working on their Final Year Project, in which they put into practice everything they’ve learned over the last four years.

Their chosen research project is the digitalisation of The Gift Box, a physical mental health support tool created by Dr Patte Randal, transforming it into a digital app to enhance user accessibility.

"The physical form of The Gift Box is limited because you have to be in the same room as others to use it," Ben explains, "By digitalising it, more people can access it anytime, anywhere."

The project stood out to them both due to the potential for real-world impact, “To have a product in the end that could be used for something as important as mental health would be so meaningful,” Michael shares. 

However, as with any project, the digitalisation of The Gift Box comes with challenges they face head-on.

"We're essentially building a digital product from scratch, starting with research and moving through to implementation," Michael notes, 

Michael and Ben have been working closely with their project client, Dr Patte Randal, to ensure that the final product meets her expectations and serves its intended purpose of assisting those experiencing mental health issues.

“One of the biggest challenges we’ve faced throughout this project is deciding how we’re actually going to digitalise The Gift Box. There are so many options and pathways we could take on this project, so trying to figure out the best one was quite a challenge.” Ben reflects.

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has become more digitalised. It showed the flaw of having a purely physical tool and the advantages of being accessible online while keeping true to the product design. 

“Though face-to-face interaction is not something to be underestimated, we’re creating the digital Gift Box app as a companion to work alongside the physical product.” Michael shares.

 “We think it’s incredibly valuable to maintain face-to-face interactions in a mental health setting as that allows people to build that bridge of trust,” Ben emphasises.

“By creating an application that everyone can download and use, we can use the advantages that digital mediums offer, catering to more people”, Michael explains,

Incorporating a range of features such as audible content of The Gift Box for those who prefer to listen instead of reading.

As well as offering multi-language support, it ensures everyone can understand the resources, regardless of language barriers. The pair are designing the app to allow it to continue to be expanded and updated as The Gift Box evolves, regardless of the user's software system or device model.

This means no users will be restricted from accessing the app's support as it is designed to be cross-platform and offers valuable insight for people across the mental health spectrum.

“There are many benefits to having a digital format of The Gift Box. The main one is that we are able to use the full capabilities of the digital environment,"

"For parts of the application, like the tutorial, we can use animations and videos rather than just static images. This allows us to create a more engaging experience for users, one that couldn’t be accomplished without digitalisation,” Ben explains.

Creating such a detailed app is extensive, “The building of the product is a small part of the development process. While programming is important, it is no more important than the research that goes on beforehand, such as client meetings and preliminary designs." Michael shares,

"At the University of Auckland, you are taught how to manage, plan and execute every step of the development process. From idea generation to research, planning, creating, testing, revision and completion.”  

As the pair work on their project, Michael and Ben are excited about the positive impact of their work. They plan to run tests and further refine the app once completed, ensuring it meets the needs of its users and client requests.

"Technology has had a huge impact on the world, especially over the past few years. For mental health tools, I think it’s going to be really beneficial to integrate physical solutions with digital ones,"

"It’s something that is really useful, and having access worldwide is such an important aspect of any application," Ben states.

Their journey from high school students to the innovative problem-solvers they are today at the University of Auckland only continues to highlight the importance of perseverance and the passion to make a real difference in the world.