scholarly journals Impact of Online Mental Health Screening Tools on Help-Seeking, Care Receipt, and Suicidal Ideation and Suicidal Intent: Evidence from Internet Search Behavior in a Large U.S. Cohort

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas C. Jacobson ◽  
Elad Yom-Tov ◽  
Damien Lekkas ◽  
Michael Heinz ◽  
Lili Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Health Screening ◽  
Mental Health Screening ◽  
Screening Tools ◽  
Care Seeking ◽  
Suicidal Intent ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Psychoactive Medications

Introduction: Most people with psychiatric illnesses do not receive treatment for almost a decade after disorder onset. Online mental health screens reflect one mechanism designed to shorten this lag in help-seeking, yet there has been limited research on the effectiveness of screening tools in naturalistic settings. Material and methods: We examined a cohort of persons directed to a mental health screening tool via the Bing search engine (n=126,060). We evaluated the impact of tool content on later searches for mental health self-references, self-diagnosis, care seeking, psychoactive medications, suicidal ideation, and suicidal intent. Website characteristics were evaluated by pairs of independent raters to ascertain screen type and content. These included the presence/absence of a suggestive diagnosis, a message on interpretability, as well as referrals to digital treatments, in-person treatments, and crisis services. Results: Using machine learning models, the results suggested that screen content predicted later searches with mental health self-references (AUC =0·73), mental health self-diagnosis (AUC = 0·69), mental health care seeking (AUC = 0·61), psychoactive medications (AUC = 0·55), suicidal ideation (AUC = 0·58), and suicidal intent (AUC = 0·60). Cox-proportional hazards models suggested individuals utilizing tools with in-person care referral were significantly more likely to subsequently search for methods to actively end their life (HR = 1·727, p = 0·007). Discussion: Online screens may influence help-seeking behavior, suicidal ideation, and suicidal intent. Websites with referrals to in-person treatments could put persons at greater risk of active suicidal intent. Further evaluation using large-scale randomized controlled trials is needed.

scholarly journals Digital Tools Fill a Gap in Mental Health Screening and Support, Particularly for Women Lacking Strong Social Networks

Iproceedings ◽  
10.2196/15207 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. e15207
Author(s):  
Dani Bradley ◽  
Christina Cobb ◽  
Adam Wolfberg
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Healthcare Provider ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Single Women ◽  
Health Screening ◽  
Mental Health Screening ◽  
Married Women ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Screening Tools

Background Roughly 11% of women suffer from postpartum depression nationwide; however, many believe the condition to be widely underreported, in part due to inadequate screening and stigma associated with the condition. Social support networks can help to prevent or mitigate symptoms related to postpartum depression. Single mothers tend to suffer from this condition at a higher rate than married women as they tend to have weaker social networks compared to married women. Objective The primary objective ws to determine whether gaps exist in mental health screening and whether digital screening tools can help to fill these gaps. The secondary objective ws to determine whether digitally delivered support proves to be more or less beneficial to subsets of women, namely based on their marital status. Methods A survey about mental health history, support, experience with mental health screeners, and characteristics of social networks was sent by email to users of the Ovia Fertility, Ovia Pregnancy, and Ovia Parenting mobile apps. Respondents were all 18 years of age or older and living in the United States. The study was granted exemption by our institutional review board. Results Of the 2016 respondents, 39% reported that they were never screened by their healthcare provider for mental health conditions (26% of women with children and 52% of women without children). Among women who reported never being screened by a healthcare provider, 17% reported that they have completed at least one of the screeners (PHQ-9 or Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS]) in an Ovia mobile app. Of the 2016 respondents, 86% reported being married or in a domestic partnership. Among the single respondents, 32% reported either having children, being pregnant, or currently trying to conceive. More single women who have children, are pregnant, or are actively trying to conceive reported that they would feel most supported by a mobile appl (namely, one of Ovia Health’s three mobile apps) and to seek treatment for mental health concerns compared to married women (19% compared to 14% of married women; P=.03). Additionally, single women who have children, are pregnant, or are actively trying to conceive reported more often than married women that they feel their mental health is best supported by a mobile appl (16% compared to 10% of married women; P=.007). However, both groups of women selected their healthcare provider and their friends/family as the first and second ranking support systems for both seeking mental health treatment and for mental health related support, with the mobile app ranking last. Conclusions Screening for mental health conditions during the reproductive health journey is lacking. Digital solutions that deliver clinically validated screening tools help to screen women who are missed in a clinical setting. Women who report being single throughout parenting, pregnancy, or while trying to conceive find more value in mobile app–provided mental health support compared to married women. These findings highlight two gaps that digital technologies, like Ovia Health, can fill: low mental health screening rates during reproductive years and suboptimal social systems.

scholarly journals Feasibility of integrating mental health screening into youth HIV Care in a Low-Middle Income Country Setting

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merrian Brooks ◽  
Bathusi Phetogo ◽  
Makhetha Monyane-Pheko ◽  
Onkemetse Phoi ◽  
Ontibile Tshume ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Case Reports ◽  
Severe Case ◽  
Health Screening ◽  
Mental Health Screening ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
Screening Programs

<p><b><u>Introduction</u></b>: Youth living with HIV (YLWH) experience higher rates of mental illness than their peers. Holistic care for YLWH may involve adopting mental health screening programs into comprehensive HIV care to help identify and address mental health concerns in young people. We explored various contexts, procedures, and safety measures throughout the integration and maintenance of a mental health screening program for adolescents attending an HIV referral clinic in Gaborone, Botswana. <b><u>Methods:</u></b> Implementation goals included a safety goal of 100% appropriate referral rate for emergency cases, and a screening goal of 70% of the approximately 1100 adolescent and young adults who were clients of the clinic at least once in the one year review period. Frequent meetings with the behavioral health team and relevant clinic staff were conducted to determine when, where and how to screen the clients. Referral procedures and an emergency protocol for certain “red flag” behaviors was developed to facilitate a warm handing off to trained mental health professionals along with a backup for non-mental health clinicians to assist in the absence of the PSS team. Every other week severe score case reports were produced by the screening team to prevent loss to follow up of suicidal ideation, hallucination or very high scores. Mild to moderate cases were referred to clinicians trained in brief intervention therapy. <b><u>Results:</u></b> Of the 846 clients screened, 191 (19.2%) had severe scores. Eight (4.1%) of these 191 severe case scores were either not immediately reported, or were inappropriately referred. Two of those eight had suicidal ideation and were not immediately referred but were appropriately followed up after being identified during bimonthly implementation team meetings. Identifying a specific trained person tasked with facilitating the screening was found to be most helpful. As was training the clinicians in methods to respond to mild to moderate results, particularly during unavailability of PSS team members. A clear and detailed protocol for severe cases was also noted as a key element in keeping the screening program safe. <b><u>Conclusions:</u></b> Establishing a universal screening program in an LMIC is possible with the consideration of various contextual factors.<u></u></p>

Mental Health Screenings: Practices and Patterns of These and Other Health Screenings in U.S. School Districts

2021 ◽  
pp. 105984052110566
Author(s):  
Ellen M. McCabe ◽  
Beth E. Jameson ◽  
Shiela M. Strauss
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
School Health ◽  
Health Screening ◽  
Mental Health Screening ◽  
Family Counseling ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Health Screenings ◽  
The Impact

Schools’ health screenings can identify students’ missed health concerns. Data from the 2016 School Health Policies and Practices Study were used to determine the proportion of U.S. school districts with physical and mental health screening policies and the proportion that arrange off-campus mental health services. We also examined differences between districts with and without mental health screening policies regarding having physical health screening policies, patterns of these policies, and off-campus mental health service arrangements. Eleven percent of districts had no policies on any of the four physical health screenings assessed, and 87% lacked policies on mental health screenings, the latter especially concerning considering the impact of COVID-19. Districts with policies on mental health screenings were significantly more likely to have body mass index ( p < .01) and oral health ( p < .001) screening policies, and to arrange for off-campus case management ( p < .001), family counseling ( p < .05), group counseling ( p < .01), self-help ( p < .05) and intake evaluation ( p < .05).

Perspectives on Mental Health Screening in the Audiology Setting: A Focus Group Study Involving Clinical and Nonclinical Staff

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Bennett ◽  
Sara Donaldson ◽  
Yazdan Mansourian ◽  
Michelle Olaithe ◽  
India Kelsall-Foreman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
Health Screening ◽  
Mental Health Screening ◽  
Screening Tools ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Clinic Staff ◽  
Psychological Difficulties

Purpose Audiology clinical guidelines recommend the use of mental health screening tools; however, they remain underutilized in clinical practice. As such, psychological concerns are frequently undetected in adults with hearing loss. This study aimed to better understand audiology clinic staff's perspectives (including audiologists, audiometrists, reception staff, and clinic managers) on how to improve detection of poor mental health by (a) exploring the role of audiology clinic staff in detecting psychological concerns in adults with hearing loss and (b) investigating the appropriateness, acceptability, and usability of several screening tools in an audiology setting. Method Eleven audiology clinic staff ( M age = 33.9 ± 7.3, range: 25–51 years) participated in a semistructured focus group. First, participants discussed the role of audiology clinic staff in detecting psychological difficulties in adults with hearing loss, including current practices and needs for improving practices. Second, participants discussed the appropriateness, acceptability, and usability of nine standardized mental health screening tools commonly used in wider health care settings. Results Audiology clinic staff described their role in being aware of, and detecting, psychological difficulties, as well as their part in promoting an understanding of the link between hearing loss and mental health. Participants described the need to provide support following detection, and highlighted barriers to fulfilling these roles. The use of mental health screening tools was considered to be client and context specific. The language used within the screener was identified as an important factor for its acceptability by audiology clinic staff. Conclusions Audiology clinic staff acknowledged that they have an important role to play in the detection of psychological difficulties and identified the core barriers to using screening tools. Future research may explore the possibility of developing a mental health screening tool specific to the unique experiences of adults with comorbid hearing loss and mental health concerns. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.16702501

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