Journal of Medical Internet Research

Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) services for common mental health disorders have been found to be effective. There is a need for strategies that improve implementation in routine practice. One-size-fits-all strategies are likely to be ineffective. Tailored implementation is considered as a promising approach. The self-guided integrated theory-based Framework for intervention tailoring strategies toolkit (ItFits-toolkit) supports local implementers in developing tailored implementation strategies. Tailoring involves identifying local barriers; matching selected barriers to implementation strategies; developing an actionable work plan; and applying, monitoring, and adapting where necessary.

The use of digital communication platforms to improve health behaviors has increased dramatically over the last decade. Public health practitioners have adopted digital communication technologies such as text messages, mobile apps, and social media to reach diverse populations. However, the effectiveness of digital communication platforms used by community-serving agencies remains unclear, and patterns of engagement and acceptability of different platforms have not been studied.

Digital mental health (DMH) programs can be effective in treating and preventing mental health problems. However, community engagement with these programs can be poor. Understanding the barriers and enablers of DMH program use may assist in identifying ways to increase the uptake of these programs, which have the potential to provide broad-scale prevention and treatment in the community.

There is a wide variation in the quality of information available to patients on the treatment of the diseases afflicting them. To help patients find clear and accessible information, many scales have been designed to evaluate the quality of health information, including the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool; the Suitability Assessment of Materials for evaluation of health-related information for adults; and DISCERN, an instrument for judging the quality of written consumer health information on treatment choices. These instruments are primarily in English. Few of them have been translated and adapted into simplified Chinese tools for health information assessment in China.

The diabetes disease burden in China is heavy, and medical standards such as diabetes guidelines are the core reference guidelines for diabetes management for health care providers and patients. However, patients’ guideline compliance is too low, which correlates with the gap between guidelines and patients’ self-management needs. Incorporating patient needs into the guideline development would reduce this gap.

Alcohol misuse is highly prevalent in the United States and results in a huge financial and public health burden. Current alcohol reduction treatments are underused, and there is a critical need for innovation in the field. Transdermal alcohol biosensors measure alcohol use passively and continuously and may be helpful tools in alcohol interventions. To date, however, alcohol biosensors have not been widely used to directly intervene on alcohol use. There is a new wrist-worn biosensor that could be used to help people reduce their drinking, although it is unclear how best to incorporate such a device into an alcohol intervention.

Most research on web-based help seeking for mental health problems has focused on the antecedents of this behavior. Therefore, little is known about the outcomes of web-based help seeking in general or in specific mental health issues.

Web-based recruitment for research studies is becoming increasingly popular and necessary. When compared with the traditional methods of recruitment, these methods may enable researchers to reach more diverse participants in less time. Social media use is highly prevalent among adolescents, and the unique context of social media may be particularly important for the recruitment of sexual minority young people who would not be captured by traditional methods.

The task complexity involved in connecting to telehealth video visits may disproportionately impact health care access in populations already experiencing inequities. Human intermediaries can be a strategy for addressing health care access disparities by acting as technology helpers to reduce the cognitive load demands required to learn and use patient-facing telehealth technologies.

Medical research based on internet archive data, which in some ways is quite different from other data-based studies, is becoming more and more common. Despite its uniqueness and the challenges that characterize it, clear ethical rules designed to guide practitioners in this field have not yet been written. This article points to the lacuna that exists in legal and ethical texts today and offers an ethically balancing alternative. Among other features, the balance is based on the famous three laws of robotics by Asimov and a series of values, including transparency, accountability, fairness, and privacy.

Sleep disorders are a global challenge, affecting a quarter of the global population. Mobile health (mHealth) sleep apps are a potential solution, but 25% of users stop using them after a single use. User satisfaction had a significant impact on continued use intention.

 The unprecedented speed of COVID-19 vaccine development and approval has raised public concern about its safety. However, studies on public discourses and opinions on social media focusing on adverse events (AEs) related to COVID-19 vaccine are rare.