Training Staff Across the Veterans Affairs Health Care System to Use Mobile Mental Health Apps: A National Quality Improvement Project
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Uncontrolled pre-post quality improvement evaluation without a comparison group.
OpenAlex W4315705572 · doi:10.2196/41773
What was done
A national quality improvement project evaluated a live, web-based training program across 19 Veterans Affairs (VA) sites spanning all 18 VA geographic regions. The program enrolled multidisciplinary VA staff with direct veteran contact across mental health and non-mental health service lines. Training consisted of a 3-hour multidisciplinary core module and an optional 1-hour clinical integration module for mental health clinicians. Program reach, participant satisfaction, and pre- to post-training changes in app knowledge, confidence/skills, and behavioral intentions were assessed via self-report surveys.
What was found
A total of 1,110 staff members representing 34 disciplines completed the training (mean 58.4 participants per site, SD 36.49; 67% [743/1109] mental health staff, 33% [366/1109] non-mental health staff). Overall, 93.85% (961/1024) were satisfied and 92.44% (941/1018) reported they would recommend the training. App knowledge scores increased significantly from pre-training (mean 80.8%, SD 15.77%) to post-training (mean 91.1%, SD 9.57%; P < .001). Participants reported significant gains in confidence showing veterans how to download (z = -13.86, P < .001) and use (z = -15.13, P < .001) VA mental health apps, alongside near-universal intentions to recommend apps to veterans.
Why it matters
This project demonstrates that brief, live web-based instruction can feasibly train both mental health and general healthcare staff across a large national system to integrate digital mental health resources into clinical workflows.
Limits
The study lacked a control or comparison group, relying strictly on uncontrolled immediate pre-post self-assessments. Actual long-term clinical practice change, sustained recommendation behavior, and downstream veteran engagement or clinical outcomes were not measured.
Cited by
- supports The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs developed a publicly available mobile application called Insomnia Coach for cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia.