CEAC-2020-11-November

Techline
Next Gen Remote Therapy Has
Bluetooth, Pulse Monitors, More
By Jennifer Brown | The Colorado Sun
DENVER (AP) — When patients sign up for the newest kind
of therapy at the Mental Health Center of Denver, here’s
what comes in their welcome packet:
A biofeedback device that clips to their ear to measure pulse
and blood-oxygen levels. A phone stand to prop up a smartphone
during therapy sessions. And directions for downloading
an app to chat with a therapist.
It’s a new era in technology for the community mental health
center, a key step toward “preparing for the next generation,”
said Alires Almon, the center’s director of innovation.
The 12-week, virtual therapy program isn’t meant to replace
traditional face-to-face counseling — it’s a contemporary
option for people who would rather work on their mental
health at home with their smartphone than walk into a mental
health center.
“People want something where they can engage on their
own terms,” Almon said. “No one has to know that you are
in therapy. It gives people an opportunity to engage in a
private way.”
Participants join a cohort with 10 to 12 others, classmates
from across the country who are logging on for group
therapy, individual chat and talk sessions, and training in
how to meditate, fall asleep and use breathing techniques to
decrease anxiety.
“You could be there with a housewife from Maine, a salesman
in Seattle, a teenager in New Mexico,” Almon said.
“You don’t even know their names.”
More than 30 people have signed up for the therapy so far,
and the mental health center’s first clients to start the program
joined a cohort about two weeks ago.
The project is a partnership with California-based tech
company Meru Health. The Mental Health Center of Denver
refers patients, but the virtual therapy comes from one of
Meru’s 45 therapists working across the country, including in
Colorado.
The first 40 participants are funded through a $58,000 grant
from Gov. Jared Polis’ Office of eHealth Innovation, but
mental health leaders are hopeful that, if it’s successful, the
state Medicaid department might someday fund smartphone
therapy the same way the government insurance program
pays for in-person and virtual behavioral health visits.
The program tracks patients’ mental health status — using
the standard seven- and nine-question tests for anxiety and
depression — every two weeks. Meru also has partnered with
Stanford University and Cigna insurance company, and initial
studies have found that nine in 10 people complete the program
and eight in 10 have improved mental well-being by
the time they finish.
Participants, on their own time, complete mental health
tutorials that are tailored to their own issues, most likely
focused on either anxiety or depression. Each week has a
different theme for learning how to cope — one week is
cognitive behavioral therapy where clients learn how to
get rid of recurring negative thoughts and another week is
about sleep habits. Other topics include diet and nutrition,
and meditation techniques.
While using meditation or breathing tutorials on the app,
clients can clip their biofeedback monitor either to an ear
or a finger. The monitor is connected through Bluetooth
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