Mobile Applications for Mental Health

Posted by Dr. Julia E. Hoffman, National Center for Telehealth & Technology

As has happened in every era, service members are returning from deployments with combat wounds that affect their mental and physical health. The impact of these problems goes far beyond the service members themselves. Deployment-related mental, behavioral and physical health problems can lead to challenges in military families and communities that last for months or even years. The good news is that there are a variety of treatments that work for post-deployment challenges, and these effective treatments are offered across the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) treatment facilities.

However, many service members and families who need treatment will never seek care for a number of reasons like logistical problems getting to treatment because of location, transportation options, work schedules, etc. Others fear the negative perception of seeking help for psychological health concerns as a sign of weakness, and some don’t even realize that treatment would be helpful because they’re trained that reintegration stress is normal.

At National Center for Telehealth & Technology (T2) we’ve been working on solutions to the problem of getting care to service members where and when they need it most. Our focus is on using technology in innovative ways to address concerns such as post-traumatic stress, depression, or traumatic brain injuries. One way we’ve found is through the use of mobile phone applications for mental health, like PTSD Coach and T2 Mood Tracker. Most people who carry smart phones have them within reach and turned on at all times, so the goal of developing these apps is to provide education, skills training, self-assessment and support to service members immediately via their mobile phone.

Mobile Apps Available:

■PTSD Coach: T2 collaborated with the VA’s National Center for PTSD to create PTSD Coach. This mobile app provides users with information on post-traumatic stress disorder, a self-assessment, support resources and tools to help manage stress symptoms. Tools based on evidence-based treatment range from relaxation skills and positive self-talk to anger management and other common self-help strategies. You can customize tools based on your preferences and can integrate your own contacts, photos and music. Download the app for free from iTunes App Store. A version for Android users is expected to be available later this Spring. For more on this mobile app, click here.

■T2 Mood Tracker: This self-assessment app monitors various aspects of your mood over time. Users select what areas they would like to track, and then use simple graphical scales to indicate how they feel. You can also add your own scales to monitor problems that are completely individualized, and enter notes about what’s going on in your environment to help explain mood changes. Download the app for free from iTunes App Store or from Android. For more on this mobile app, click here.

If you’re not sure if treatment is necessary, use these apps to anonymously check your well-being, and then seek routine care if necessary. Even if you’re already in treatment, these apps provide ways to measure stress and offer coping strategies between sessions—when real life happens.

More mobile apps are coming out for service members, veterans, families and providers—stay tuned for Breathe2Relax!

For additional information and resources, visit the DCoE Mental Health Awareness Month page. Learn more about T2 at t2health.org.

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National Resource Directory Goes Mobile

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 25, 2011 – An easy-to-navigate version of the National Resource Directory website -- which connects wounded warriors, service members, veterans and families with those who support them -- now is available for mobile phones.

With more than 3,000 new users each day searching for information on the site, it makes sense to have a mobile version, said John R. Campbell, deputy assistant secretary of defense for wounded warrior care and transition.

In a recent interview with American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel, Campbell explained that developing the mobile version of the site was an important step in reaching out to younger generations of wounded warriors, service members transitioning out of the military, and their families.

“They are looking for more efficient ways to gather information, and with this explosion of applications on smartphones, it was kind of a no-brainer that we needed to put a mobile version out there,” Campbell said. “Everything we’re trying to do now is geared toward younger servicemen and women applying digital media -– the platform they want to use.”

The website came online in late 2009. Since October, use has grown from around 40,000 each month to 90,000, Campbell said. It is geared toward wounded warriors and transitioning service members, offering nearly 14,000 resources and services to help their move into civilian life.

“The site is being used a lot more than ever, because the information that’s on there is so valuable,” he said.

Users can find tips for writing a resume, techniques to prepare for job interviews, information on veterans’ benefits and compensation and family caregiver support, to name just a few of the services available on the website. Information is searchable by topic audience -- service member, veteran, family member or service provider -- and location.

Users also can sign up for online webinars taught by volunteer professionals, Campbell said.

The website “gives our servicemen and women and their families, we think, a tremendous amount of information from local, state, from federal government and other agencies on not-for-profit corporations,” Campbell said. “It really gives them a wonderful way to find information that they need, that they can search for a number of different ways.”

And now, with the launch of the mobile version, users have an easier-to-navigate version of the site in the palm of their hands anywhere they have mobile reception, he said.

“The mobile version is really the same information, [but] if you were to look at the browser on your phone, you’d see what you see on your [computer] screen,” Campbell said. “But you would only see a small part of it, because the screen is much smaller [on a mobile device].”

The mobile version is not a separate application, Campbell stressed. Users still have to go to the directory website at http://www.nationalresourcedirectory.gov from their mobile device. Once the site loads, they can scroll to the bottom of the page and click the link “NRD mobile” for the mobile version.

The mobile version condenses all of the information on the standard website into five links, and is easier to view and access on a mobile device, Campbell explained.

“This will enable you to get to whatever information -- the 13,000 services that are represented -- with just a couple of clicks,” he said. “Whatever you’re looking for -- information on employment, benefits, information on finances -- whatever you need.”

Information and services on the website are screened and thoroughly reviewed by the Defense Department in collaboration with the departments of Veterans Affairs and Labor, Campbell said.

“This is just one of the number of things in the [Defense] Department to make it easier and more meaningful for wounded warriors and transitioning servicemembers and their families,” he added.

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Smartphone App Helps Troops, Vets Manage Stress

From a Department of Veterans Affairs News Release

WASHINGTON, April 19, 2011 – Veterans dealing with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder can turn to their smartphones for help any time with the “PTSD Coach” application created by the Veterans Affairs and Defense departments.

“This is about giving veterans and service members the help they earned when and where they need it,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki said. “We hope they, their families and friends download this free app. Understanding PTSD and those who live with it is too important to ignore.”

PTSD Coach lets users track their symptoms, links them with local sources of support, provides accurate information and helpful individualized strategies for managing symptoms, officials said. The app is now available for download from the iTunes Store and will be available for Android devices by the end of the spring.

“This application acknowledges the frequency with which our warriors and veterans use technology and allows them to get help when and where they feel most comfortable,” said Dr. Jonathan Woodson, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.

PTSD Coach is primarily designed to enhance services for individuals who are already receiving mental health care, though it is helpful for those considering entering mental health care and those who just want to learn more about post-traumatic stress, officials said.

“This is a great service we are providing to veterans, service members, their families and friends, but it should not be seen as a replacement for traditional therapy,” said Dr. Robert Petzel, VA’s undersecretary for health. “Veterans should utilize all of the benefits they have earned with their service, and one of the best things about this app is it will get veterans connected to the places that are out there to provide help.”

The application is one of the first in a series of jointly designed resources by the VA National Center for PTSD and the Defense Department's National Center for Telehealth and Technology to help service members, veterans, their families and friends manage their readjustment challenges and get anonymous assistance, officials said.

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