Jun 18
- June, 18 2018
- Kathleen Qu, M.Sc
A study published in Psychiatric Services found mobile health interventions to be just as effective as a clinic-based group intervention for people with serious mental illnesses.
Dr. Ben-Zeev, PhD, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, and colleagues compared traditional clinic-based interventions to mobile-delivered mental health intervention to examine the differences in treatment, satisfaction, symptom improvement, recovery, and quality of life. The study examined patients suffering from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder. Participants were randomized into mobile or traditional treatment intervention for 12 weeks and were a part of a 6 month follow up.
It was observed that patients in the mobile health treatment group were more likely to begin mental health treatment compared to traditional treatment group (90% vs. 58%) and significantly more patients in the mobile health treatment group completed the treatment compared to traditional (56% vs 40%).
Both groups showed improvement during the follow up study. The traditional treatment group showed significant improvements at the 3-month follow up mark, however the patients in the mobile health group showed improvement in recovery and quality of life at the 6-month mark.
The need for accessible mental health support and the stigma surrounding mental health beget the need for an innovative solution. Mobile mental health has been proven to be as effective as in-person treatments and can provide immense opportunities for accessibility, support, triage, and self-management.
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Full Article Link: https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201800063