Dara H. Sorkin

As telehealth grows in ubiquity, it is important to understand the barriers and facilitators to telehealth utilization in historically marginalized populations. This study utilizes the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to assess correlates of the intention to utilize video consultations among low-income Hispanic patients.

This study included participants recruited from a federally qualified health center affiliated with a large university health system. Components of the TPB were assessed using an in-person survey. Participant survey responses were analyzed using multiple logistic regression to identify correlates of participants' intention to utilize video consultations.

Findings: Multiple logistic regression revealed subjective norms as the only significant correlate of participants' intention to utilize video consultations. Attitudes toward video consultations and perceived behavioral control did not independently correlate with behavioral intention.

Ratings of subjective norms were independently correlated with intention to utilize video consultations among low-income, predominantly Spanish-speaking Hispanic adults. These results suggest a potentially central role of relational influences in determining telehealth engagement in this population.
 

Authors aim to examine the extent to which patterns of adoption of counseling services and digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) shifted in recent years (2019–2021), the impact of distress on adoption of mental health support, and reasons related to adolescents' low adoption of DMHIs when experiencing distress.

Data were from three cohorts of adolescents aged 12–17 years (n = 847 in 2019; n = 1,365 in 2020; n = 1,169 in 2021) recruited as part of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS). Researchers examine the likelihood of using mental health support as a function of psychological distress, sociodemographic characteristics, and cohorts. They also analyzed adolescents' self-reported reasons for not trying DMHIs as a function of distress.

Findings: The proportion of adolescents reporting elevated psychological distress was higher than those adopting counseling services or DMHIs. A higher level of distress was associated with a greater likelihood of receiving counseling and using DMHIs to connect with a professional and for self-help. Among those experiencing high distress, adolescents' top reason for not adopting an online tool was a lack of perceived need.

Adolescents' main barriers to DMHI adoption included a lack of perceived need, which may be explained by a lack of mental health literacy. Thoughtful marketing and dissemination efforts are needed to increase mental health awareness and normalize adoption of counseling services and DMHIs.
 

The Innovation Technology Suite (branded as Help@Hand in 2019) was a five-year statewide demonstration funded by Prop 63 (now known as the Mental Health Services Act) between 2017–2024 and had a total budget of approximately $101 million. It brought a set (or “suite”) of mental health technologies into the public mental health system and intended to understand how mental health technologies fit within the public mental health system of care. In addition, Help@Hand led innovation efforts by integrating peers throughout the program.

The primary purpose of Help@Hand, a demonstration project that brought a set of mental health technologies into the public mental health system, was to increase access to mental health care and support, promote early detection of mental health symptoms, and predict the onset of mental illness. Each county/city who participated in the project sought to develop a complementary support system to bridge care, offer timely support, remove barriers, and to create new avenues of care for communities not connected to conventional county services and/or to build out support for those who are connected.

In Year 5, Los Angeles County, Marin County, Mono County, Monterey County, Orange County, Tehama County, and Tri-City concluded their involvement in Help@Hand. The City of Berkeley, Riverside County, San Francisco County, and Santa Barbara County will finish their participation in 2024. Throughout 2023, all counties/cities planned the end of their projects, examined how to sustain activities, and evaluated project achievements and challenges to inform future endeavors.

This study cites 2019–2022 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) data.
 

​Summary: Mental health concerns are a significant issue among community college students, who often have less access to resources than traditional university college students. Mobile apps have the potential to increase access to mental health care, but there has been little research investigating factors associated with mental health app use within the community college population.

This study aimed to understand facilitators of and barriers to mental health app use among community college students. A web-based survey was administered to a randomly selected sample of 500 community college students from April 16 to June 30, 2020. Structural equation modeling was used to test the relationships between the use of mental health apps, perceived stress, perceived need to seek help for mental health concerns, perceived stigma, past use of professional mental health services, privacy concerns, and social influence of other people in using mental health apps.

Findings: Of the 500 participants, 106 (21.2%) reported use of mental health apps. Perceived stress, perceived need to seek help, past use of professional services, and social influence were positively associated with mental health app use. Furthermore, the effect of stress was mediated by a perceived need to seek help. Privacy concerns were negatively associated with mental health app use. Stigma, age, and gender did not have a statistically significant effect.

These findings can inform development of new digital interventions and appropriate outreach strategies to engage community college students in using mental health apps.

This article refers to survey questions based from the 2019 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS). 

Read the Publication:

• Journal Article: Understanding Mental Health App Use Among Community College Students: Web-Based Survey Study