Activity: Public engagement and outreach › Public speaking engagements
Description
Even before the COVID-19 crisis, digital therapeutics were becoming increasingly popular. At the end of 2019, NHS England announced that over 300,000 patients were now using some form of digital therapy, ranging from CBT and psychoeducation to counselling, all involving various forms of online and video conferencing platforms. The numbers today are far higher. During the coronavirus pandemic, most therapists are now expected, even required, to offer their services via Zoom or Skype. But in the rush to capitalise on the convenience and accessibility of online therapy, it seems as if something, somewhere has gone missing. In this paper, I will try to characterise and articulate the sense of loss that frequently attends online work, drawing on the work of Freud and the German philosopher and cultural critic Walter Benjamin.