OurChild Digital Platform for Child Mental Health

Overseen By Yi-Ling Tan, MPH

Age: Any Age

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: NYU Langone Health

Disqualifiers: Siblings, No smartphone, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: Unknown

264 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

What is the purpose of this trial?

Chinese American immigrant families are a fast-growing immigrant group with unmet early childhood mental health needs. The team proposes to design, build, and implement OurChild, an integrated mHealth/EHR solution to increase access to early childhood mental health knowledge and mental health services and resources for Chinese American children ages 2-6 years old and their parents in the Sunset Park Brooklyn.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether participants need to stop taking their current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the OurChild mHealth Digital Platform treatment for child mental health?

Research on similar digital health platforms, like myHealthE and Assioma, shows that these tools can improve communication between patients, families, and clinicians, enhance clinical efficiency, and support mental health services. These findings suggest that the OurChild platform might also be effective in promoting child mental health by facilitating better care coordination and engagement. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

How is the OurChild Digital Platform treatment different from other treatments for child mental health?

The OurChild Digital Platform is unique because it leverages mobile health technology to provide mental health support directly to children and their families, promoting active involvement and communication between patients, caregivers, and clinicians. Unlike traditional treatments, it offers a scalable, cost-efficient solution that can be accessed via smartphones, tablets, and PCs, making it particularly useful in low- and middle-income countries where access to mental health services is limited. ^{3 5 6 7 8}

Research Team

Simona Kwon, DrPh

Principal Investigator

NYU Langone Health

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for Chinese American children aged 2-6 and their parents in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Parents must be legal guardians, willing to consent, and have a smartphone. Children should prefer Chinese language and have been patients at the specified health center for over 6 months.

Inclusion Criteria

Child must have been receiving pediatric primary care at the 7th Ave FHC for at least 6 months

My child is between 2 and 6 years old.

Parents must be the child's parent/legal guardian

Exclusion Criteria

Siblings and parents of previously enrolled children

You need to have an iPhone or Android smartphone to participate.

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Design and Development

Collaborate with stakeholders to conduct needs analysis and participatory design activities; build a digital library of resources; pilot and assess the beta version of OurChild

18 months

Implementation and Evaluation

Evaluate the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of OurChild 1.0 through an implementation cohort study

27 months

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for changes in accessing resources, parent-provider engagement, and referrals

3 months

Treatment Details

Interventions

• OurChild mHealth Digital Platform

Trial Overview The OurChild mHealth Digital Platform is being tested as a tool to improve access to mental health information and services for young Chinese American children by integrating with electronic health records.

Participant Groups

Group I: OurChild Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

NYU Langone Health

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1,431

Recruited

838,000+

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

Collaborator

Trials

473

Recruited

1,374,000+

Findings from Research

The user embracement software for pediatric risk classification was evaluated positively by specialists, achieving over 70% approval in key quality areas such as functional adequacy (100% from informatics specialists) and safety (100% from nursing specialists).

Overall, the software demonstrated strong technical quality and functional performance, with high scores in usability (84.9% from informatics and 98.7% from nursing) and performance efficiency (93.4% from informatics and 96.2% from nursing).

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluation of user embracement software with pediatric risk classification. Felipe, GF., Lima, FET., Barbosa, LP., et al.[2021]

The myHealthE (MHE) system successfully automates the collection and reporting of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, demonstrating feasibility and acceptability within NHS clinical services.

The paper outlines a framework for developing and implementing digital health innovations, addressing logistical and governance challenges, which can guide future researchers in creating interoperable systems within NHS infrastructure.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Moving from development to implementation of digital innovations within the NHS: myHealthE, a remote monitoring system for tracking patient outcomes in child and adolescent mental health services. Morris, AC., Ibrahim, Z., Moghraby, OS., et al.[2023]

The Assioma m-Health platform was developed to enhance communication and data collection in a child and adolescent neuropsychiatry unit, showing high usability and satisfaction among families (50% satisfied) and clinicians (33% satisfied) based on a study with 30 participants (24 caregivers and 6 clinicians).

The platform has the potential to optimize clinical pathways, improve compliance, and increase clinical efficiency, while also reducing the need for in-person visits, which is particularly important during the COVID-19 pandemic.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile-Health Technologies for a Child Neuropsychiatry Service: Development and Usability of the Assioma Digital Platform. Fucà, E., Costanzo, F., Bonutto, D., et al.[2021]

Digital health interventions, such as mobile apps and electronic health records, can enhance patient safety for children and their parents by providing preventive measures and risk management strategies, as identified in a scoping review of 13 studies.

These interventions can improve the continuity of care from hospitalization to home, thereby increasing children's safety and quality of care through better engagement with healthcare providers after discharge.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Digital health intervention on patient safety for children and parents: A scoping review. Park, J., Jeon, H., Choi, EK.[2023]

A scoping review of 32 articles revealed that eHealth applications can effectively promote child mental health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), focusing on interventions for families, school mental health services, and pediatric care systems.

Most eHealth studies reported positive outcomes, indicating that while many were conducted in high-income countries, their design strategies can be adapted for LMICs, highlighting the need for more research to test these strategies in diverse contexts.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Use of Technology to Promote Child Behavioral Health in the Context of Pediatric Care: A Scoping Review and Applications to Low- and Middle-Income Countries. Huang, KY., Lee, D., Nakigudde, J., et al.[2023]

Out of 3806 mental health apps identified, only 15 (0.39%) met the criteria for targeting anxiety, depression, or PTSD in youth, indicating a significant lack of quality options available for young users.

The overall quality of the eligible apps was moderate, with a mean score of 3.59 on the Mobile App Rating Scale, and only one app had been evaluated in a randomized controlled trial, highlighting the need for more rigorous scientific evaluation and development of mental health apps.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile-based interventions for common mental disorders in youth: a systematic evaluation of pediatric health apps. Domhardt, M., Messner, EM., Eder, AS., et al.[2021]

Young people generally engage well with mobile-based mental health apps, showing some positive effects on emotional self-awareness, although many outcomes were not statistically significant.

Despite the potential of these apps to improve access to mental health services and support self-help, the current literature is limited, highlighting the need for more research to validate their effectiveness.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Use of mobile apps and technologies in child and adolescent mental health: a systematic review. Punukollu, M., Marques, M.[2023]

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced mental health providers to transition to virtual care for children and youth, highlighting the need for specific guidance in this area.

A six-pillar framework developed by the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto provides a structured approach for delivering effective virtual mental healthcare, addressing both the benefits and challenges of this new service model.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

From Pandemic to Progression: An Educational Framework for the Implementation of Virtual Mental Healthcare for Children and Youth as a Response to COVID-19. Doan, BT., Yang, YB., Romanchych, E., et al.[2022]

References

1. Brazil pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluation of user embracement software with pediatric risk classification. [2021]

2. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Moving from development to implementation of digital innovations within the NHS: myHealthE, a remote monitoring system for tracking patient outcomes in child and adolescent mental health services. [2023]

3. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile-Health Technologies for a Child Neuropsychiatry Service: Development and Usability of the Assioma Digital Platform. [2021]

4. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Digital health intervention on patient safety for children and parents: A scoping review. [2023]

5. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Use of Technology to Promote Child Behavioral Health in the Context of Pediatric Care: A Scoping Review and Applications to Low- and Middle-Income Countries. [2023]

6. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile-based interventions for common mental disorders in youth: a systematic evaluation of pediatric health apps. [2021]

7. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Use of mobile apps and technologies in child and adolescent mental health: a systematic review. [2023]

8. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

From Pandemic to Progression: An Educational Framework for the Implementation of Virtual Mental Healthcare for Children and Youth as a Response to COVID-19. [2022]