Fiona Costello
eMHIC Webinar MC
Fiona Costello is a seasoned healthcare professional with over 15 years of experience spanning the NHS, private, and non-profit sectors. Currently serving as Strategic Initiatives Lead at eMHIC, International Business Development Director at Aire Innovate, and SVP Partnerships at Brain+, Fiona has consistently demonstrated her commitment to improving health services through technology. Her notable achievements include expanding digital mental health technology within NHS services at SilverCloud Health, contributing to the Canadian Mental Health App Assessment Standard with ORCHA, and enhancing digital health delivery in India. At Aire Innovate, Fiona advocates for the adoption of low-code platforms in healthcare, believing these tools can streamline processes and enhance patient care. With a focus on driving innovation safely and effectively, Fiona remains dedicated to learning and growing in the digital health field, always striving to contribute positively to healthcare outcomes through innovative solutions.
Alvin van Asselt
PhD Student
Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of 10, Alvin faced numerous life challenges. Despite graduating from high school at 17, environmental mismatches prevented college attendance. Frustration with the quality of mental health care led him to pursue a career in the field, earning an associate degree as an expert in experience in 2018. Since then, he has worked in various roles for mental health care providers, both as a counselor and in advisory capacities.
Alvin joined the SAM app project during a research internship to obtain an MSc in clinical psychology, graduating cum laude in 2024. Currently pursuing a PhD at GGz Centraal and the Vrije Universiteit, he studies the effects of the SAM Junior app and Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, a term describing heightened social pain in response to rejection or criticism, common in autistic communities. Alvin is dedicated to amplifying the voices of the autistic community through high-quality, participative research.
Yvette Roke
Psychiatrist, GGz Centraal
Yvette Roke has been a psychiatrist at GGz Centraal, the fourth-largest psychiatric hospital in the Netherlands, since 2001. An innovator and researcher, she earned her PhD in 2013, focusing on prolactin-related side effects of antipsychotics in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Post-PhD, Yvette developed SAM (Stress Autism Mate), an E-mental health app for ASD self-management. She won the Health Valley Bridge Prize and Tenzinger Healthcare Smart Innovation Award in 2021, and SAM earned a bronze award from VGZ in 2022. Her team also created SAM Junior for young people with ASD and 1e STAPP for those on mental health care waiting lists. These apps, co-created with lived experience individuals, are scientifically validated, secure, and available in seven languages.
