@Article{info:doi/10.2196/23813,
author="Mirea, Dan-Mircea
and Martin-Key, Nayra A
and Barton-Owen, Giles
and Olmert, Tony
and Cooper, Jason D
and Han, Sung Yeon Sarah
and Farrag, Lynn P
and Bell, Emily
and Friend, Lauren V
and Eljasz, Pawel
and Cowell, Daniel
and Tomasik, Jakub
and Bahn, Sabine",
title="Impact of a Web-Based Psychiatric Assessment on the Mental Health and Well-Being of Individuals Presenting With Depressive Symptoms: Longitudinal Observational Study",
journal="JMIR Ment Health",
year="2021",
month="Feb",
day="22",
volume="8",
number="2",
pages="e23813",
keywords="online assessment; mental health; e-health; digital diagnosis; mood disorders; bipolar disorder; major depressive disorder",
abstract="Background: Web-based assessments of mental health concerns hold great potential for earlier, more cost-effective, and more accurate diagnoses of psychiatric conditions than that achieved with traditional interview-based methods. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a comprehensive web-based mental health assessment on the mental health and well-being of over 2000 individuals presenting with symptoms of depression. Methods: Individuals presenting with depressive symptoms completed a web-based assessment that screened for mood and other psychiatric conditions. After completing the assessment, the study participants received a report containing their assessment results along with personalized psychoeducation. After 6 and 12 months, participants were asked to rate the usefulness of the web-based assessment on different mental health--related outcomes and to self-report on their recent help-seeking behavior, diagnoses, medication, and lifestyle changes. In addition, general mental well-being was assessed at baseline and both follow-ups using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS). Results: Data from all participants who completed either the 6-month or the 12-month follow-up (N=2064) were analyzed. The majority of study participants rated the study as useful for their subjective mental well-being. This included talking more openly (1314/1939, 67.77{\%}) and understanding one's mental health problems better (1083/1939, 55.85{\%}). Although most participants (1477/1939, 76.17{\%}) found their assessment results useful, only a small proportion (302/2064, 14.63{\%}) subsequently discussed them with a mental health professional, leading to only a small number of study participants receiving a new diagnosis (110/2064, 5.33{\%}). Among those who were reviewed, new mood disorder diagnoses were predicted by the digital algorithm with high sensitivity (above 70{\%}), and nearly half of the participants with new diagnoses also had a corresponding change in medication. Furthermore, participants' subjective well-being significantly improved over 12 months (baseline WEMWBS score: mean 35.24, SD 8.11; 12-month WEMWBS score: mean 41.19, SD 10.59). Significant positive predictors of follow-up subjective well-being included talking more openly, exercising more, and having been reviewed by a psychiatrist. Conclusions: Our results suggest that completing a web-based mental health assessment and receiving personalized psychoeducation are associated with subjective mental health improvements, facilitated by increased self-awareness and subsequent use of self-help interventions. Integrating web-based mental health assessments within primary and/or secondary care services could benefit patients further and expedite earlier diagnosis and effective treatment. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): RR2-10.2196/18453 ",
issn="2368-7959",
doi="10.2196/23813",
url="https://mental.jmir.org/2021/2/e23813",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/23813",
url="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33616546"
}