JMIR Formative Research

Background: COVID-19 accelerated the adoption of health services, with a growing number of psychosomatic patients turned to the internet for health-related decisions.

Mobile health tools that use the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) appear to be a promising tool to streamline and improve the treatment of substance use disorders. However, patient involvement in the development of these tools is uncommon, and research on the preferences of people being treated for substance use disorders has been scarce. In the scope of the European Union IMMERSE (Implementing Mobile Mental health Recording Strategy for Europe) consortium, an ESM-based tool for Digital Mobile Mental Health (DMMH) was first codeveloped and later tested in 4 European countries.

Heart failure (HF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are responsible for a significant amount of the economic and chronic disease burden that impacts the Ontario health system. Telehomecare, a home self-management program launched by the Ontario Telemedicine Network (OTN), was created to improve access to quality care and limit health care use. However, few data are available on patient-, caregiver-, and provider-reported outcomes of telehomecare.

People with HIV and substance use disorders (SUD) have complex healthcare needs requiring adaptive and effective support systems. While mobile health applications can foster virtual communities grounded in shared lived experiences, little is known about the dynamics within these digital spaces.

University students show a high prevalence of diverse mental health problems, requiring adaptable interventions to assist them in improving their mental health.

Online harm affects many people and has been associated with self-harm and suicidal ideation. Although there is an emerging body of evidence that addressing adverse online experiences should be part of the support offered to people who are at risk of self-harm and suicide, there has been little guidance to date on how this support might be provided and how safe conversations can be had on the subject. A UK charity dedicated to offering emotional support to anyone experiencing mental discomfort, having difficulty coping, or being at risk of suicide developed a digital intervention, the Online Safety Hub (the Hub), to address this shortfall.

The evolution of language models, particularly large language models, has introduced transformative potential for psychological assessment, challenging traditional rating scale methods that have dominated clinical practice for over a century.

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people experience a higher number of health disparities compared to cisgender counterparts. Social determinants of health are linked to these health disparities in minority communities, including in the TGD community. Lack of social support contributes significantly to these disparities for the TGD community.

Anxiety and depressive disorders are common and burdensome, yet many people prefer to self-manage and do not access treatment or fail to achieve meaningful improvement. Prior research indicates that the frequency of performing simple, everyday actions, namely “The Things You Do” (TYD; i.e., healthy thinking, meaningful activities, having goals and plans, healthy routines, and social connection) is strongly associated with support mental health and wellbeing. This research has been primarily quantitative in nature and so less is known about how people perceive and interpret changes in their mental health when engaging in or limiting these actions.

Many parents who use donor-assisted conception to form their families struggle with telling their children about how they came to be. To address this problem, we created the Tool to Empower Parental TeLling and TaLking or the TELL Tool, a digital, psychoeducational and decision-support intervention for parents with children aged 1 to 16 years. Recently, we completed a pilot randomized controlled trial of the TELL Tool that showed feasibility, acceptability, and promise. However, in its current version, the TELL Tool does not include content for pregnant, expecting, or new parents with children less than 1 year of age.

Uncontrolled diabetes contributes to serious comorbidities and mortality. Effective self-management can improve outcomes, though barriers such as limited education and support often prevent patients from engaging in such behaviors. Automated texting systems show promise to deliver diabetes self-management education as they are accessible and scalable. Furthermore, customizing these systems may further enhance patient engagement compared to standard, one-size-fits-all approaches. However, such customization is more resource-intensive, and it remains unclear whether the added effort meaningfully enhances diabetes self-management and outcomes.

Globally, we face a significant treatment gap in mental health care, with extensive wait times, exorbitant prices, and concerns about appropriateness for non-Western clients. Digital single-session interventions (SSIs) may offer a promising alternative. SSIs target particular mechanisms that underlie broad-ranging psychopathology, including deficits in problem-solving skills.