Happy Appy

Anne Chen Research & Development Advanced Methods

2/17/2014 Intent Statement

Project 1: Mychiatry Will Go Situation Statement Depression and anxiety disorders are on the rise, especially in the youth population.1 At the same time, the utilization of “Quantified Self” products to now address mental health issues (rather than just focusing on physical health) has also increased.

Opportunity Statement I want to investigate if having such “pocket therapists”2 is really a more effective treatment method than traditional therapy sessions and medications. Depression is an especially difficult illness to understand and treat - which methods have worked best for patients, and which have not? Are there disparities in answers based on demographic and/or psychographic profiles?

How can we learn from such considerations and employ them in developing successful apps?

Audience The target audience will be patients suffering from depression and other anxiety-related illnesses, as well as their families. Privacy concerns - especially considering the social stigma which often comes with struggling with any mental disease - and issues related to symptom disclosure and cultural acceptance will play a vital role if interviews are sought after.

Current Offer Many apps for depression have been developed - such as CBT MobilWork2 - and now it is the time to see if they have actually fomented substantial results compared to traditional [and less “innovatively technological”] treatment methods.

New Value Will our market eventually become so saturated with apps seeking to relieve mental illnesses that our society will witness the extinction of traditional treatment methods? Should we allow this to happen and contribute to efforts dedicated to making it a reality? This investigation seeks to answer such questions, and, if findings reveal that the answer to the latter is “yes”, then we are also better prepared to make such contributions.

1. Noguchi, Sharon. “Teen health: Depression, anxiety, and social phobias rising in kids, educators say.” San Jose Mercury News. 7, Feb. 2014. Web. 17, Feb. 2014. http://www.mercurynews.com/health/ci_25074044/teen-healthdepression-anxiety-and-social-phobias-rising.

2. Trudeau, Michelle. “Mental Health Apps: Like A ‘Therapist In Your Pocket.” The National Public Radio. 24, May. 2010. Web. 17, Feb. 2014. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127081326.

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Key Insights Part I - A Multitude of Stakeholders: How Diverse Interests Affect Treatment Especially when considering the “intangibleness” of mental health - that is, the challenge of developing effective treatment methods caused by the difficulties in communicating symptoms (from the patient’s end); understanding and diagnosing illnesses (from the practitioner’s end); and accepting the pressing significance of mental disorders (from the view of general society and the government) - it is unsurprising to see how much progress is required in both treatment methods, financial support, and care coverage.

Part II - Mental Health Issues: Making Connections Stress and mental health are closely connected, an important consideration which supports the rise in mental disorders such as anxiety and depression (as these are often caused by high stress levels).

Physical and mental health are also inherently linked - thus, the growing interest in using nutritional, exercise, and meditation-based interventions. Finally, the relevance of human relationships to both mood and mental health cannot be ignored - this explains why support groups and community channels through which patients can openly share experiences without fear of stigma have proven to be promising sources of effective treatment.

Part III - Technology as an Agent of Change Now that we’ve considered Parts I and II, we can now turn to how technology is vital to this discussion, especially as technological advancements (a) improve convenience, accessibility, ease, and speed of communication; and (b) provide more effective tools in overcoming the aforementioned challenge of tackling mental health’s “intangibleness”. I found it best to summarize my insights visually below, such that linkages can be readily seen.

FACT: HUMAN BEINGS ARE A SOCIAL SPECIES HUMANS ARE SHAPED / INFLUENCED BY RELATIONSHIPS COMMUNICATION = RELATIONSHIP CULTIVATION CHANNEL ↑ accessibility ↑ convenience ↑ speed ↑ time

TECHNOLOGY = COMMUNICATION ENHANCER

MENTAL HEALTH = COMMUNICATION CORRELATOR

Thus, we see these trends in technology (see Trend Matrix on page 1).

companies government health professionals patients society

I did consider filming the session, but realized that my interviewee would be extremely uncomfortable (especially considering the fact that one of the main sources of her mental issues stem from an extremely negative self-image) with this arrangement.

(III) Debriefing & Recollection Insights Now as a loved one, I was already familiar with my interviewee’s situation, so most of her answers weren’t that surprising to me. However, as I’d first explained to her that this was for a school project before actually conducting the interview, I feel that this may have affected how she answered my questions (vs. how she’d answered similar ones when I’d asked her for updates in the past).

I think that completing the Era’s Map first allowed me to approach my interview methodology in a more educated manner - that is, knowing what questions to ask, how to ask them, etc. Some key connections between my map and interview findings include: • •

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the social stigma felt by those suffering from a mental illness is still a major problem one of the main problems patients struggle with [when it comes to treatment] is finding the right therapist in terms of (a) finding someone who they feel comfortable enough with and (b) building an open and long-term relationship with a therapist misdiagnosis is another problem - for example, my loved one was first diagnosed as having “borderline personality disorder”, then “bipolar disorder”; one psychiatrist even proposed “You don’t really have a problem… your generation unfortunately just faces social anxiety and mental stress on a daily basis thanks to technological advancements and social media sites which have resulted in you guys being more confused and sensitive about your self-identities than generations of the past…”

Compar i ngwi t hCl as s mat es S i mi l arT opi c,Di f f er entAppr oaches

Explore Concepts & Solutions

User Personas

Anne Chen March 5, 2014 R&D Advanced Methods

“Defining user personalities and needs for exploring how they might use a given concept�

Steps 1. Generate a list of potential users 2. Generate a list of attributes 3. Define a few user types 4. Create personas around each user 5. Consider the concept and how each user might use it Images: Class Work from February 26, 2014

THE “APP” IDEA

One of the biggest issues faced by all parties is understanding mental disorders in general. This is an especially major challenge because typically, patients suffer from more than one mental illness at once – as a result, symptoms often overlap and appropriate diagnoses cannot be easily made. So what if there was an App which utilizes detailed, user-entered information in order to build a “mental map” profile? For instance, a user would simply start by describing his or her symptoms / mood swings, and the App would generate relevant questions (i.e. “Do you also feel tired all the time? Have you also lost your appetite?”) The more answers logged, the richer the profile. The App can then move on to suggest an initial diagnosis, and follow-up with others (i.e. “You might also have an eating disorder – do you feel that you restrict your diet on a regular basis?”) Various response options – such as ones which use a “ranking scale”, are based on multiple-choice, or even set up to be open-ended – will allow for more accurate diagnoses and thus will result in the development of treatment methods which are personally-tailored and successful.

Doctors, loved ones, and researchers alike can also access a patient’s “profile” (privacy options will be up to the user to set, of course) such that all relevant parties will be involved in the entire “treatment ecosystem”, cultivated and continuously improved via a single App!

Dispirited Danielle DEPRESSION PATIENT / WORKING MOTHER Brief Descriptive Snapshot Dispirited Danielle is a young working mother, well-educated but still struggling to make ends meet, as she must juggle her hectic work schedule with being a single parent taking care of two children. Since her divorce, Danielle has felt increasingly despondent and depressed, with little interest in activities that she used to feel passionately about and a substantial drop in appetite. Worried that her change in mood will negatively impact both her job and her relationship with her kids, Danielle began seeing a therapist on a regular basis. However, she feels that the combination of weekly counseling and medication has not proven to be an effective treatment method for her, in terms of both symptom-relief and convenience. She desires a more modern way to address her depression, one which aligns better with her responsibilities as a mother and working professional.

Concerned Claudette WORRIED MOTHER OF BIPOLAR CHILD Brief Descriptive Snapshot Concerned Claudette has struggled with finding the right treatment for her son, Mark, for years. Since high school, the now 25-year old Mark has worked with countless therapists, and has yet to meet one who he likes and understands his issues. Initially diagnosed as having a borderline personality, Mark is currently being treated for bipolar disorder, yet Claudette still has her misgivings and worries that this could also just be another misdiagnosis. She hates watching Mark try new medications and endure their various side-effects; she longs for a more effective way to treat mental disorders which do not involve so much “second-guessing” and may put her son’s long-term health at risk.