Salem-area therapists prescribe mobile apps to support mental well-being

Mobile apps are helping Willamette Valley residents cope with stress, anxiety and other mental health conditions.

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When it comes to mobile phone apps, the benefits they bring to a person’s life can be debated. If someone is burning hours of valuable time during their work day while engaged in gaming, social media or gossip news, then those apps may be more of a hindrance than a helpful tool.

However, mental health professionals in the Kaiser Permanente Northwest system are finding that certain apps can be tremendous mental health support tools for members. In fact, some therapists are even now prescribing apps to help with mental well-being.

The case for ‘e-prescribables’

Several years ago, Kaiser Permanente initiated research into non-traditional interventions, specifically looking at how technology could support mental health for members. Local mental health professionals discovered members coping with stress, new parenting roles and other pressures that may affect their daily life. At the same time, these were people who may not always need or have the time for a mental health provider appointment. Could phone apps serve as a useful tool to support this population? The answer was a resounding “yes.”

Kaiser Permanente mental health professionals narrowed in on a few apps that, with some guidance, could potentially help thousands of members. They began to refer to them as “e-prescribables,” explains Jeremy Gardner, a licensed marriage and family therapist for Kaiser Permanente Northwest.

“The main reason we landed on applications is because the one constant most people have in their life is their phone,” Gardner said. “Books, websites, videos are not always easily accessible, but the phone is easy. It’s always with them. What we want to do is help members see that their phone could be more than just a distraction. It can be an intentional part of their day to help them function better in areas of their life.”

Guiding patients

Calm and Headspace are two of the most popular recommended apps, Gardner noted. They both include guided meditations that help with anxiety, sleep and other issues. The experience of prescribing apps to help support mental well-being goes far beyond making a simple suggestion, the therapist emphasized. Under the Kaiser Permanente effort, a mental health professional tells a member where to go in the app, how to use it, and gives specific assignments within the app for a certain period of time.

“When I direct a patient to Calm (an app), I will tell them an exact area or specific meditation I want them to start with,” he explained. “Instead of just giving (a patient) an app and letting them run wild with it, we try and really prescribe exactly what we want them to do.”

The guidance also allows a therapist to build cues and reminders into the phone experience for the member that can alert the person to change a behavior or at least notice it. For example, an alert could sound if a game is played for a certain period of time, indicating time is wasted. More personalized cues encouraging a person to think about how he or she feels when experiencing certain types of content and even alerts to modify behavior can also be built into the experience, Gardner added.

How the apps are introduced to members has been popular for older adults who may have initially struggled with the thought of turning to technology in the first place. However, once an app is installed and assignments are made, they have embraced the experience. “We’re finding that some of the best adherence has been with those older adults,” Gardner noted.

Increased usage, updated content

App prescriptions for mental well-being grew tremendously throughout the pandemic. Prior to March, there were about 200 to 400 prescriptions per month. In March, that jumped to between 1,200 and 1,400 and has remained at that level since. More than half the recommendations result in members actually using the apps.

One reason app user rates are increasing is because app developers are constantly adding updated content that speaks to issues happening right now. Unlike a book, which may become outdated, Gardner says during the lockdown, the apps immediately geared new content towards relevant issues that affected users daily.

The future, augmented reality

While the early results with e-prescribables have been encouraging, Gardner still sees tremendous potential for the use of apps for mental well-being in the future. For example, augmented reality could allow the phone to project images into environments viewed through the screen. With the help of a mental health professional, this technology could support positive mood or perspective shifts and even help some people deal with phobias, he said.

“Right now, you’re dealing with low grade, surface level, conditions. I think there are ways technology can go deeper to deal with more difficult things,” he said.

Common e-prescribables

Some of the most recommended apps Kaiser Permanente mental health professionals suggest include:

  • Calm*
  • Headspace
  • HabitMinder
  • New Horizons (for kids)
  • Woebot
  • SuperBetter
  • MoodMission
  • Happify

*Calm is available to Kaiser Permanente members at no-cost.

Kaiser Permanente Northwest serves the Willamette Valley with comprehensive medical, specialty and dental care services. For more information go to kp.org/northwest. For additional Kaiser Permanente stories click here.


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