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Feasibility of perinatal mood screening and text messaging on patients’ personal smartphones

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Abstract

Screens and adjunctive treatments for perinatal mood are available, but barriers prevent many women from receiving them. Mobile technology may help bypass barriers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of screening and texting perinatal women via their personal smartphones. This prospective cohort study enrolled 203 pregnant and postpartum women receiving obstetric care at a Midwestern US academic medical center. Participants received one electronic mood screen and three text messages per week for two weeks. Texts were based on the Mothers and Babies Course, a CBT-based preventative program that addresses limited social support, lack of pleasant activities, and harmful thought patterns. Feasibility was defined as the ability to take the mood screen and receive texts without technical difficulties. Demographic variables were paired with results. Insurance type (private or public) was used as a proxy for socioeconomic status. Pearson chi-squared tests were used to analyze the data. A text-based satisfaction survey was also administered. The sample was 72% privately insured and 28% publicly insured. Sixty-seven percent completed electronic screening. Screen completion was significantly associated with private insurance (OR = 3.8, 95% CI 2.00–7.30) and “married” status (OR = 1.93, 95% CI 1.01–3.70). Most survey respondents (92%) found it easy to receive the texts, and 76% responded with very favorable comments about the texts. Smartphone mood screening and supportive texting were technically feasible. Screen completion was lower among single women with public insurance.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Instant Census for granting us the use of their text messaging platform.

Funding

This study was funded in part by support from the Satter Foundation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, NorthShore University HealthSystem, 2650 Ridge Avenue, Walgreen Suite 1507, Evanston, IL, 60201, USA

    Laura M. La Porte, J. Jo Kim, Marci G. Adams & Richard K. Silver

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, 924 E 57th St Suite 104, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    J. Jo Kim & Richard K. Silver

  3. Instant Census, Zagaran Software, Boston, MA, USA

    Benjamin M. Zagorsky

  4. Division of Biological Sciences, University of Chicago, 5801 S Ellis Ave, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Robert Gibbons

Authors
  1. Laura M. La Porte
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  2. J. Jo Kim
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  3. Marci G. Adams
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  4. Benjamin M. Zagorsky
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  5. Robert Gibbons
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  6. Richard K. Silver
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Richard K. Silver.

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Conflict of interest

Dr. Robert Gibbons is a founder of Adaptive Testing Technologies, which distributes the CAT-MH™ battery of adaptive tests. Benjamin Zagorsky is an employee of Zagaran Inc., the company that owns the text messaging software used in the study. The rest of the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Research involving human participants and/or animals

As noted in the manuscript text, all procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

As noted in the manuscript text, informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Disclaimer

The study sponsors had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; or decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

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La Porte, L.M., Kim, J.J., Adams, M.G. et al. Feasibility of perinatal mood screening and text messaging on patients’ personal smartphones. Arch Womens Ment Health 23, 181–188 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-019-00981-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-019-00981-5

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