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Guidelines to Establish an Equitable Mobile Health Ecosystem
Karen L Fortuna1, Arya Kadakia1, Theodore D Cosco1
1Department of Psychiatry (Fortuna) and Center for Technology and Behavioral Health (Barr), Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire; BRITE Center, University of Washington, Seattle (Kadakia); Gerontology Research Centre, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, and Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, University of Oxford, Oxford (Cosco); Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, Department of Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Health Care System, and Center for Behavioral Health, Media, and Technology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh (Rotondi); Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts (Nicholson, Myers); School of Social Work, University of Illinois, Urbana (Mois); College of Applied Health Sciences Human Factors and Aging Laboratory, University of Illinois, Champaign (Mois); College of Social Work, University of Kentucky, Lexington (Hamilton); Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and Center for Health Equity and Community Engagement Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota (Brewer); Psychology Department, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (Collins-Pisano); Department of Medicine, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, and Prisma Health, Greenville (Hudson); Centre for Mental Health, University of Rwanda, Kigali (Joseph); Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division, Vinfen, Cambridge, Massachusetts (Mullaly); Clarity Health, Nashua, New Hampshire (Booth); College of Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington (Lebby); Office of Recovery and Empowerment, Massachusetts Department of Mental Health, Boston (Walker).
Mobile health (mHealth) offers mental health support but can exclude disadvantaged groups. Designing an equitable mHealth ecosystem is crucial for improving access and outcomes for all populations.
Area of Science:
- Digital health
- Health equity
- Mental healthcare
Background:
- Mobile health (mHealth) shows promise for mental health support, including monitoring, psychoeducation, and evidence-based practices.
- Certain populations, such as racial/ethnic minorities, rural residents, socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, and people with disabilities, face barriers to mHealth benefits despite high mental health needs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose principles for developing an equitable mHealth ecosystem.
- To address disparities in mHealth access and utilization among underserved populations.
Main Methods:
- The article proposes an mHealth ecosystem incorporating human-centered design.
- Key strategies include reducing machine learning bias, promoting inclusive design features, facilitating informed technology choices, embracing adaptive technology, enhancing digital literacy, and improving overall mHealth accessibility.
Main Results:
- A well-designed mHealth ecosystem can help mitigate inequities in mental healthcare.
- Implementation of proposed principles can enhance access to and uptake of mHealth services by disadvantaged groups.
Conclusions:
- Developing an equitable mHealth ecosystem is essential for addressing health disparities.
- Adopting a human-centered, inclusive, and adaptive approach to mHealth design and implementation can improve mental health outcomes for all individuals.
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