Systematic review synthesizes HCP perceptions on digital mental health tools augmenting care
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Key Takeaway
Consider that HCPs endorse digital mental health tools to augment, not replace, face-to-face care.
This is a systematic review and thematic synthesis examining healthcare professional (HCP) perceptions and experiences with digital mental health tools (DMHTs) versus face-to-face clinical care. The review synthesized findings from 604 HCPs in clinical practice settings.
The authors identified several key themes. HCPs strongly endorsed that DMHTs should augment—not replace—face-to-face clinical care and that they can increase access to care. Other synthesized themes included considerations for clinical practice, using DMHTs to enhance care, and perceived barriers and concerns. A persistent theme was concern regarding therapeutic quality, risk management, and workload burden.
The review did not report specific pooled effect sizes, as it was a thematic synthesis rather than a quantitative meta-analysis. The authors did not report a formal assessment of study quality or risk of bias for the included sources.
Limitations noted include the focus on HCP perceptions, which may not reflect patient experiences or clinical outcomes. The authors did not report details on the specific digital tools studied or the duration of follow-up.
Practice relevance is restrained: the authors conclude that context-sensitive implementation and proper infrastructure are essential for successful integration into mental health services.
View Original Abstract ↓
BackgroundMental health difficulties are highly prevalent worldwide. Digital mental health tools (DMHTs) have been developed to increase accessibility to mental healthcare for people who may struggle to access care due to cost, location or stigma. As the views of stakeholders are important in understanding the potential barriers to and facilitators of DMHT implementation, the aims of this review were to critically appraise and synthesise qualitative findings relating to the perceptions and/or experiences of healthcare professionals (HCPs) on the use of digital mental health tools in clinical practice.MethodA systematic search of mixed-method and qualitative studies was performed using five databases. Eligible studies were quality-assessed. Data were analysed using inductive thematic synthesis.ResultsFifteen studies were identified and reviewed. Four main themes (alongside eight subthemes) were developed from the data of 604 HCPs: 1) DMHTs should augment – not replace – face-to-face clinical care; 2) Considerations and caveats to use in clinical practice; 3) Using DMHTs to enhance clinical care; and 4) Perceived barriers and concerns.ConclusionHCPs strongly endorsed the view that DMHTs offer increased access to care, however, concerns about their therapeutic quality, risk management, and workload burden persist. Context-sensitive implementation and proper infrastructure are essential for successful integration into mental health services.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42020188879.
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