Browsing by Author "Franco Vivanco, Pamela Verónica"

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    A Chilean survey of perinatal women and health care professionals? views towards perinatal apps
    (AME Publishing Company, 2023) Franco Vivanco, Pamela Verónica; Kelders, Saskia; Muzard, Antonia; Olhaberry Huber, Marcia
    Background: Women around the globe are increasingly engaging with pregnancy and parenting apps, almost becoming a routine part of the maternity experience. However, little is known about what perinatal women and health care professionals feel about those apps in Latin American countries, where the digital transformation has been slower but where digital technologies could also bridge gaps in access to quality health care.Methods: This study aimed to assess views towards pregnancy and parenting apps in perinatal women and perinatal health care professionals in Chile through an online survey. In perinatal women, we explored app use, what they value in the apps they use, and what an "ideal app" would be for them. In health professionals, we explored opinions about women using perinatal apps and what they think a perfect app for their clients would be. Results: The survey was completed by 451 perinatal women and 54 perinatal health care professionals.Results show that perinatal women in Chile frequently use perinatal apps, and they and health care professionals show a positive attitude towards them. The most valued attributes are information and monitoring of body changes during pregnancy, information and monitoring of the baby's development (in the uterus and after birth), information and tips on how to stay healthy, and having the possibility to interact with other women.Conclusions: Perinatal apps are accepted by perinatal women and health care professionals in Chile. Some needs for an "ideal app" emerged. Participants mentioned the need to address mental health, including the mental health of their partner, and the need for support during the transition to parenthood.
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    App-based intervention for reducing depressive symptoms in postpartum women: Protocol for a feasibility randomized controlled trial
    (2023) Franco Vivanco, Pamela Verónica; Olhaberry Huber, Marcia; Cuijpers, Pim; Kelders, Saskia; Muzard, Antonia
    Background: Chile has a high prevalence of postpartum depression and a significant treatment gap. Some barriers to postpartum depression care uncover the need for more easily accessible and lower-cost interventions. Chile's high utilization of digital technologies across all social strata and the increased use of pregnancy and parenting apps open the possibility of delivering interventions through mobile devices. Cognitive-behavioral internet-based interventions have proven to be effective in reducing symptoms of depression in high-income countries. However, in Chile, this is an underdeveloped field. This manuscript describes a randomized controlled trial protocol that will examine the feasibility and acceptability of a guided 8-week cognitive-behavioral app-based intervention for Chilean postpartum women with depressive symptoms. Method: A small-scale parallel 2-arms trial will be conducted. Postpartum women with minor or major depression will be randomized to the app-based intervention or waitlist. The primary outcomes are feasibility and acceptability variables, mainly; recruitment and eligibility rates, intervention and study adherence, and participants' intervention satisfaction, use, and engagement. Semi-structured interviews with a sub-sample will provide more information about the participants' experience with the intervention. Women's depression status will be assessed at pre-treatment, post-treatment, and 1-month follow-up. Other secondary outcomes will include participants' perceived social support, mother-infant bonding, and maternal satisfaction and self-efficacy. Discussion: This will be the first internet-based intervention aimed at reducing postpartum depression symptoms developed and studied in Chile. If the intervention and procedures prove feasible and acceptable, we plan to study its efficacy in a definitive controlled trial. If the intervention demonstrates to be effective, the aim is to implement it within the Chilean healthcare setting.
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    Guided internet-based intervention for postpartum depression symptoms: Development and feasibility trial
    (2024) Franco Vivanco, Pamela Verónica; Olhaberry Huber, Marcia; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de Psicología
    Postpartum depression (PPD) represents a significant concern in Chile due to its high prevalence and considerable treatment gap. Amidst this challenge, the prevalent use of digital technologies and parenting applications offers new avenues for delivering Internet-based psychological interventions (IBIs), which have shown effectiveness in mitigating depression symptoms and hold potential for addressing PPD. This doctoral thesis project embarked on developing and assessing an IBI tailored for PPD, named “Mamá, te entiendo” (“Mom, I get you”). This 8-week guided intervention, aiming to diminish depressive symptoms among postpartum women, is rooted in cognitive-behavioral therapy, incorporating insights from mentalization and attachment theories, and delivered through a web app. Developed in line with the CeHRes Roadmap framework, this human-centered approach involved a systematic review, online surveys, focus groups, usability tests, interviews, and a technical pilot for its creation. To assess the intervention’s feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy, a pilot randomized controlled trial with 65 postpartum women diagnosed with minor to major depression was conducted. Participants were allocated to either the intervention or a waitlist control group, with assessments at the baseline, post-intervention (8 weeks), and one-month post-intervention (12 weeks). This mixed-methods approach combined quantitative and qualitative analyses to gain insights into participant experiences. Primary outcomes focused on feasibility and acceptability measures like recruitment rates, attrition, and participant satisfaction and engagement. Secondary outcomes examined depression symptoms, perceived social support, mother-infant bonding, and maternal self-efficacy. “Mamá, te entiendo” showed promising feasibility and acceptability, characterized by high satisfaction and engagement levels, although adherence posed a challenge. Participants highlighted several strengths: emotional support, beneficial content, practical exercises, empathetic e-coach feedback, and a user-friendly interface. However, some faced barriers like extensive texts, difficulty tracking progress, and time constraints. Initial efficacy findings indicated no significant differences across outcomes between the intervention and control groups. Nonetheless, both groups experienced improvements in PPD symptoms, mother-infant bonding, and maternal self-efficacy, which could be attributed to spontaneous recovery or concurrent mental health treatments. This study marks the first attempt in Chile to evaluate a psychological IBI for PPD symptoms, underscoring the potential and acceptability of technology-driven mental health solutions.
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    Internet-Based Interventions for the Prevention and Treatment of Mental Disorders in Latin America : A Scoping Review
    (2019) Jimenez-Molina, A.; Franco Vivanco, Pamela Verónica; Martinez, V.; Martinez, P.; Rojas, G.; Araya, R.
    Background: There is a huge gap in the treatment of mental disorders in Latin America, especially among socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. Given the sharp increase in Internet access and the rapid penetration of smartphones in the region, the use of Internet-based technologies might potentially contribute to overcoming this gap and to provide more widely distributed and low-cost mental health care in a variety of contexts. Methods: We conducted a scoping review of the literature in order to systematically map the existing evidence on use of Internet-based interventions for prevention, treatment, and management of mental disorders across Latin American countries, as well as to identify existing gaps in knowledge. Six electronic databases were searched for published papers (PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, SciELO, and CENTRAL). Results: After the eligibility assessment, we identified 22 Internet-based studies carried out in Latin America for prevention, treatment, education, or facilitating self-management of mental disorders. Included studies mainly targeted depression (n = 11), substance misuse (n = 6), anxiety (n = 3), and mental health literacy for education and health professionals (n = 2). Most studies were undertaken in Brazil (n = 6), Mexico (n = 5), and Chile (n = 4). Only 3 studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs), 4 were pilot RCTs, and 15 were naturalistic, acceptability, or feasibility studies. The three RCTs identified showed disparate results, but overall, there are challenges to face. Better results are seen in the short-term (postintervention or after 3 months), but most studies do not explore outcomes for long enough (follow-up after 6 or 12 months). Most of the feasibility and pilot studies showed reasonably good acceptability for a wide range of strategies but difficulties to engage and retain participants for long enough or adhering to established protocols. Conclusion: This study shows that Internet-based interventions for the prevention and treatment of mental disorders are growing rapidly in Latin America, but there are few studies on effectiveness and cost effectiveness, making it difficult to provide the evidence needed to justify scaling up these interventions.