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Technology-Delivered Mental Health Interventions for People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA): a Review of Recent Advances

Current HIV/AIDS Reports volume 12, pages 472–480 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

HIV/AIDS infection and psychiatric diagnoses are closely linked, with an estimated 50 % of HIV-infected individuals diagnosed with co-occurring mental health disorders. Mental health disorders have been shown to be associated with HIV acquisition as well as poor treatment outcomes for those infected with HIV. Therefore, behavioral interventions to improve HIV/AIDS health outcomes have included interventions addressing mental health co-morbidities, such as depression and anxiety, and the use of technology to facilitate such intervention is growing. The current review focuses on research published between January 2011 and April 2015, exploring technology-based interventions aimed to improve health outcomes among HIV/AIDS individuals with co-occurring mental health symptoms. Technologies identified in this review included telephone-delivered and computer-delivered interventions. Despite rapid advances in technology use in the medical professions, particularly in the area of psychiatric treatment, little has been translated into the area of mental health research in the context of HIV disease. This review reveals that the widespread dissemination of various technologies, especially technologies facilitating access to care among vulnerable and marginalized populations, may be a necessary way to offer evidence-based mental health interventions to HIV/AIDS populations in need.

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Acknowledgments

Some of the authors’ time was supported by the following grants: R34 MH097588-01 (Kempf) and K24MH094214 (Safren). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official view of the National Institute of Mental Health.

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Family, Community & Health Systems, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1701 University Boulevard, NB 1019D, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA

    Mirjam-Colette Kempf

  2. Center for Palliative and Supportive Care, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 933 19th Street South, CH-19 Suite 219N, Birmingham, AL, 35205, USA

    Chao-Hui Huang

  3. Community Psychiatry Program, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 908 20th Street South, CCB Room 446, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA

    Robert Savage

  4. Department of Psychology, University of Miami, 5665 Ponce de Leon Blvd., P.O. Box 248185, Coral Gables, FL, 33124, USA

    Steven A. Safren

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  1. Mirjam-Colette Kempf
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  2. Chao-Hui Huang
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Correspondence to Mirjam-Colette Kempf.

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Kempf, MC., Huang, CH., Savage, R. et al. Technology-Delivered Mental Health Interventions for People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA): a Review of Recent Advances. Curr HIV/AIDS Rep 12, 472–480 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11904-015-0292-6

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Keywords

  • Mental health
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Technology-based intervention
  • Telepsychiatry
  • Telemedicine
  • People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA)