TY  - JOUR
AU  - Smith-MacDonald, Lorraine
AU  - Jones, Chelsea
AU  - Sevigny, Phillip
AU  - White, Allison
AU  - Laidlaw, Alexa
AU  - Voth, Melissa
AU  - Mikolas, Cynthia
AU  - Heber, Alexandra
AU  - Greenshaw, Andrew J
AU  - Brémault-Phillips, Suzette
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/8/12
TI  - The Experience of Key Stakeholders During the Implementation and Use of Trauma Therapy via Digital Health for Military, Veteran, and Public Safety Personnel: Qualitative Thematic Analysis
JO  - JMIR Form Res
SP  - e26369
VL  - 5
IS  - 8
KW  - trauma
KW  - mental health
KW  - telemedicine
KW  - therapy
KW  - rehabilitation
KW  - digital health
KW  - psychotherapy
KW  - military
KW  - veteran
KW  - first responder
KW  - public safety personnel
KW  - teletherapy
KW  - telepsychiatry
KW  - mobile phone
AB  - Background: Exposure to occupational stressors and potentially psychologically traumatic events experienced by public safety personnel (eg, paramedics, police, fire, and correctional officers), military members, and veterans can lead to the development of posttraumatic stress injuries and other mental health disorders. Providing emergency services during COVID-19 has intensified the challenges. Owing to COVID-19 restrictions, mental health service providers offering support to these populations have had to rapidly pivot to use digital versus in-person methods of service delivery. Objective: This paper aims to explore the experience of mental health service providers regarding digital health service delivery, including the current state of digital mental health service delivery, barriers to and facilitators of the use of digital health for mental health service delivery experienced during the pandemic, and recommendations for implementing and integrating digital health into regular mental health service delivery. Methods: This embedded mixed-methods study included questionnaires and focus groups with key stakeholders (N=31) with knowledge and experience in providing mental health services. Data analysis included descriptive, quantitative, and qualitative thematic analyses. Results: The following three themes emerged: being forced into change, daring to deliver mental health services using digital health, and future possibilities offered by digital health. In each theme, participants’ responses reflected their perceptions of service providers, organizations, and clients. The findings offer considerations regarding for whom and at what point in treatment digital health delivery is appropriate; recommendations for training, support, resources, and guidelines for digitally delivering trauma therapy; and a better understanding of factors influencing mental health service providers’ perceptions and acceptance of digital health for mental health service delivery. Conclusions: The results indicate the implementation of digital health for mental health service delivery to military members, public safety personnel, and veterans. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, remote service delivery methods for trauma therapy are urgently needed to support the well-being of those who have served and continue to serve. 
SN  - 2561-326X
UR  - https://formative.jmir.org/2021/8/e26369
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/26369
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34387549
DO  - 10.2196/26369
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/26369
ER  -