Technology Based/Enhanced Clinical Interventions

[yeti2213]

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Does anyone know about, actually work on, or has a cousins brother-in-laws ex-wife's new boyfriend that knows about people doing work on using technology in clinical interventions?

I've seen the smart phone based cognitive bias modification study that Enock etc are working on at Harvard. I've also seen a couple of trauma support websites, but I am curious what else is out there. Given my interest in trauma and IT background, it seems a logical place to look.

Your input is appreciated. And if you actually do this kind of work, would love to chat with you.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I have seen some VA community based out-patient clinics (CBOCs) use video conferencing services, similar to Skype, for check-ins with both social work and psychiatry. I talked with one of the social workers who did it, and she said that it worked surprisingly well and has helped cut down on wait times for follow-up.

I have seen some interesting adaptions using technology for patient education, though it really depends on your area of practice. In the area of neuropsychology and rehabilitation psychology, I have used 3d brain models (online) to talk to patients and family members about head injury. I have heard of a few iPhone resources developed specifically for people with head injuries, though I am most familiar with more general programs (like alarm programs) to help patients remember to take meds, attend appointments, etc.

 

[yeti2213]

Just getting back from a mHealth (mobile health) conference and wanted to update this thread with stuff I saw. For those into health psychology there is a ton of stuff out there on med compliance, diet and physical activity tracking etc.

One thing that got my attention amongst this mess of things was a wearable camera thingy (see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2813220/). They apparently have an algorithm that processes the videos into sensible chunks and allowing a trained observer to code it the subject's activity, seemed like a possible path to get around, enhance, or verify self reported data.

A couple of psych specific things I spotted and the PI's on them:

- NICU-2-Home: Mobile app used to support parents of low birthweight babies based on Bandura's Theory of Self-Efficacy
- DBT Coach: A Blackberry App for Borderline Personality Disorder (Linda Dimeff)
- SMS Based Approaches for Homework Adherence in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Adrian Aguilera)
- BodiMojo -- a mobile application dealing with body image distortion issues in adolecense girls (Tara Cosineau)

For those of you in the military medical system the TATRC has a mCare program targeted at National Guard/Reservists who are getting treated in their communities. There focus is on interactions between care teams and patients, particularly those with TBI. Easily the most comprehensive and impressive mobile tool I saw; capturing information on mood, stress etc that a psychologist might find useful to have on a client.

PM me if you want to know more about anything in particular.