Enhancing Behavioral Health Care: Insights from the 2023 Society for Digital Mental Health Conference

Contributed by Lauren Weiner, Ksana Health Director of Clinical Science.

On June 21, 2023, Ksana Health recently attended the 2023 Society for Digital Mental Health Conference. The event highlighted the role of technology in enhancing mental health care while emphasizing the importance of human connections.

Here are some of our key takeaways from conference sessions:

#1: Tech as a Complement, not a Replacement: 

Digital health tools should supplement traditional clinical care, not replace it. These tools can help practitioners stay engaged with patients between sessions and intervene in complex cases, ensuring clinicians work at their best.

#2: Human Connection is Vital for Engagement: 

While digital tools are essential, human connection remains paramount for patient engagement. Building rapport and trust impacts how patients interact with technology and how long they engage with it.  

#3: Integration into Clinical Settings: 

Effective integration of digital health tools into clinical settings can be challenging. Engaging a champion within the organization and utilizing user-centered design research can streamline implementation. Features like single sign-on and customized data access by role can aid in smooth integration. 

#4: Triage and Patient-Practitioner Matching: 

Technology can help patients access the right level of intervention through a tiered care model. Integrating validated assessments and leveraging self-reported metrics and passive sensing for triage can support making appropriate service connections. Effective patient-practitioner matching leads to better outcomes and satisfaction. 

#5: Training and Provider Engagement: 

Successful adoption of digital tools requires proper training during work hours and ongoing implementation support. Providing data feedback and forums for practitioners to share experiences can enhance their confidence in using the tools.

#6: Multi-Sector Collaboration is Critical: 

The importance of multi-sector collaboration cannot be overstated in developing, validating, and implementing commercially viable, effective digital mental health solutions. Combining scientific and clinical rigor and market insights, these collaborations are essential for creating and disseminating solutions that offer the highest standards of effectiveness, accessibility, and user experience. 

 Our team shared learnings from our ongoing projects in three conference presentations.  

Two were flash talks in collaboration with Columbia University Medical Center/New York State Psychiatric Institute.  

1. Acceptability and Usability Testing of a Digital Behavioral Health Platform for Youth at Risk of Suicide 

2. Developing an implementation blueprint for a digital behavior change platform for youth at risk of suicide

The third is a poster developed in collaboration with Northwestern University/Rush University Medical Center.

3. How Can Academic-Industry Partnerships Thrive? Insights from a Smartphone Mental Health App Randomized Controlled Trial 

Thanks for your interest in these insights and our presentations. Please contact us if our continuous behavior measurement products can add value to your work.