Online Mental Health Information Research Articles

Just Google it: Evaluating Online Mental Health Information for Parents of Children with Cystic Fibrosis

Just Google it: Evaluating Online Mental Health Information for Parents of Children with Cystic Fibrosis

What do they look for and what do they find? A coproduced qualitative study on young people's experiences of searching for mental health information online.

Many young people (YP) struggle with their mental health and look online for help. To capitalise on their digital presence, we need to better understand how and where they seek information online and what they think of what they find. We recruited 24 YP (aged 13-18 years). Online interviews were co-conducted by research team members and trained young researchers. We presented a persona with depression symptoms and asked about potential sources of information/support they might seek. They were also asked to think aloud while searching online and reviewing mental health resources (NHS, Young Minds). We used reflexive thematic analysis. Analysis generated four themes: (1) the online help-seeking process, showcasing where YP look for information and why; (2) the mismatch between the information YP expected to find and the reality; (3) the strategies YP employed to determine a source's trust and credibility and (4) individual differences that can influence help-seeking. Participants initiated their online search by Googling symptoms. They trusted NHS websites for basic medical information, while charities provided detailed content. Despite scepticism about content, social media offered validation. Online resources should prioritise visual appeal, user-friendliness, age-appropriate and personalised content and peer insights. Codesign is imperative to ensure high-quality, impactful research.

The trajectories of online mental health information seeking: Modeling search behavior before and after completion of self-report screens

There is an appreciable mental health treatment gap in the United States. Efforts to bridge this gap and improve resource accessibility have led to the provision of online, clinically-validated tools for mental health self-assessment. In theory, these screens serve as an invaluable component of information-seeking, representing the preparative and action-oriented stages of this process while altering or reinforcing the search content and language of individuals as they engage with information online. Accordingly, this work investigated the association of screen completion with mental health-related search behaviors. Three-year internet search histories from N = 7572 Microsoft Bing users were paired with their respective depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or psychosis online screen completion and sociodemographic data available through Mental Health America. Data was transformed into network representations to model queries as discrete steps with probabilities and times-to-transition from one search type to another. Search data subsequent to screen completion was also modeled using Markov chains to simulate likelihood trajectories of different search types through time. Differences in querying dynamics relative to screen completion were observed, with searches involving treatment, diagnosis, suicidal ideation, and suicidal intent commonly emerging as the highest probability behavioral information seeking endpoints. Moreover, results pointed to the association of low risk states of psychopathology with transitions to extreme clinical outcomes (i.e., active suicidal intent). Future research is required to draw definitive conclusions regarding causal relationships between screens and search behavior.

Exploring the Digital Mental Health Literacy of the Tunisian population: A Cross-sectional Online Survey

IntroductionIn the digital age, the landscape of mental health information dissemination and consumption in Tunisia has experienced a profound transformation. As the digital revolution continues to reshape our lives, understanding how individuals seek and interact with mental health information online has become increasingly critical.ObjectivesThe primary objectives of this study are as follows:-To comprehensively investigate the digital mental health literacy of individuals in Tunisia by administering an insightful online questionnaire.-To delve into the multifaceted aspects of how Tunisians engage with mental health content on digital platforms, unveiling their comfort levels, preferences, and decision-making factors. Methods This study conducted an online survey comprising three sections. The first gathered demographic information to profile our diverse participants. The second explored internet usage patterns, unveiling their digital activities. The third delved into perceptions of mental health information on social media, revealing preferences. Our survey reached participants of various ages and locations in Tunisia.Results The findings of this study cast a revealing spotlight on the digital mental health landscape in Tunisia. A significant proportion of our respondents frequently engaged with various social media platforms. Notably, Instagram emerged as the favored platform for 80% of our participants, while 72% chose Facebook as their preferred digital sanctuary. Intriguingly, 57% of our respondents actively embarked on quests for mental health information on YouTube, with a distinct preference for video-based content. In the labyrinth of online mental health information, our participants exhibited a discerning eye. They assigned paramount importance to source credentials, references to reputable sources, and unwavering adherence to established medical guidelines. However, beneath this discernment, a noteworthy 65% harbored doubts regarding the accuracy of online information, reflecting the inherent challenges and complexities of navigating the digital information ecosystem.Furthermore, our study unearthed areas where social media platforms may still grapple with shortcomings in addressing the multifaceted needs of mental health consumers. Participants eloquently expressed concerns about the accuracy of information, the availability of reliable platforms, and the crucial need for a diverse array of perspectives in mental health content on social media.ConclusionsThis study offers key insights into Tunisia’s digital mental health landscape. It highlights prevalent digital information consumption and preferences. Emphasizing the need for credible and diverse mental health information on social media is vital. This sample lays the foundation for enhancing available content, better supporting mental well-being in Tunisia.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Navigating Mental Health Support in Tunisia’s Digital Age: Preferences, Challenges, and Paradoxes-An online survey

IntroductionThe digital age has transformed mental health support in Tunisia. This study explores how individuals seek assistance for mental health concerns online, considering their comfort levels, preferences, and decision-making factors.ObjectivesThis study aims to: Investigate the comfort levels of Tunisians when discussing mental health concerns online Identify preferred online sources for mental health support Explore factors influencing the choice between online sources and mental health professionalsMethods To unearth these insights, an exhaustive online survey was meticulously conducted. This survey was posted online on different social media platforms and cast a wide net, drawing responses from an eclectic cross-section of Tunisian society. The survey methodically gathered data on participants’ demographics, their inclinations towards online avenues for seeking assistance, and the multifaceted factors that sway their choices in this digital age.ResultsIntriguingly, the results of this study illuminate several key findings:Comfort Levels: A striking 47% of respondents expressed their unease about discussing their mental health concerns online. This statistic vividly underscores the intricate interplay between digital platforms and the persistent social stigma surrounding mental health issues.Preferences for Online Sources: The study notably revealed that mental health apps and online counseling websites are emerging as the favored choices among those seeking support. This underscores the surging significance of digital mental health solutions tailored to individual needs.Factors Influencing Preferences: An array of factors sways the preference for online sources. Among them, the allure of anonymity, the appeal of convenience, and the perception of limited access to in-person mental health professionals were prevalent. Additionally, financial constraints emerged as a notable consideration in the decision-making process.Trust in Online Information: In contrast, individuals who leaned toward seeking assistance from mental health professionals stressed the pivotal importance of professional expertise, personalized guidance, and a comprehensive understanding of their concerns. Importantly, 38% expressed reservations about the reliability of online mental health information, underscoring the critical role of trust in the process.ConclusionsThis study sheds light on the nuanced process of seeking mental health assistance in the digital age. It emphasizes the need to address mental health stigma and improve online resource credibility. The findings highlight the importance of comprehensive mental health strategies that integrate digital solutions and traditional professional care, catering to diverse preferences and needs in Tunisia.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Understanding How Youth Search for Mental Health Information Online: A Qualitative Descriptive Study

The objective of this study was to understand how youth search for mental health information online. Youth partners were engaged at the onset of the project and provided input throughout on the design, conduct and analysis. Individual, semi-structured interviews with Canadian youth with experience searching for mental health information online were conducted. Data collection and reflexive thematic analysis proceeded concurrently. Fourteen youth were interviewed. Four main themes related to how youth search online emerged: mind-set shapes the search process; external factors shape the search process; key attributes of helpful information; and cues affecting trustworthiness of online information. Findings can inform the development of youth-friendly online mental health information that is perceived as helpful and trustworthy by youth. Ensuring youth have access to quality online mental health information, accessible to how they search for it, is critical to the mental health and development of youth.

Communicating about online health information with patients: Exploring determinants among telemental health providers.

To investigate determinants of telemental health (TMH) providers' openness to discuss and confidence to use online mental health information with patients, focusing on providers' eHealth literacy and perceived usefulness of online MH information. TMH providers (N=472) completed a web-based survey with questions about discussing and using online health information with patients, perceived usefulness of the Internet as a source of patient information, and eHealth literacy. Providers were open to discussing online health information with patients if they were not treating substance abuse disorders (b=-0.83), felt the Internet was a useful resource (b=0.18), and felt confident in their skills to evaluate the online information (b=0.21). Providers were confident using online health information if they worked in a small clinic (b=0.37), felt the Internet was a useful resource (b=0.31), knew where to access relevant online health information (b=0.13), and had skills to help their patients find (b=0.17) and evaluate (b=0.54) online information. TMH providers are likely to use online health information resources if they know where and how to find them and perceive the Internet as a useful resource. To effectively discuss online health information with patients, providers require skills to evaluate the information with patients.

Adolescent pursuit of health information online during the COVID-19 pandemic: The roles played by eHealth literacy and psychological distress.

COVID-19 has led to an increase in mental health problems for adolescents. In this study, we examined the factors related to the eHealth literacy of adolescents and how that impacted their pursuit of health information and mental health information online during the COVID-19 pandemic. We analyzed data from the 2020 Taiwan Communication Survey, which involved a total of 1,250 national representative adolescents who completed an online questionnaire. The results showed that two-thirds of adolescents reported searching for health information online, and about half of them reported searching for mental health information online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multivariate analysis results indicated that adolescents who spent more time learning online, had higher levels of bonding social capital and self-determination, and had higher levels of parental active internet mediation were more likely to have higher levels of eHealth literacy. In addition, multivariate analysis results showed that adolescents who had higher levels of eHealth literacy and had higher depression and anxiety were more likely to seek health information and mental health information online. In conclusion, the levels of eHealth literacy and psychological distress of adolescents played a crucial role in their pursuit of health information and mental health information online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

An infodemiological study of worldwide google search volumes for major depressive disorder and persistent depressive disorder from 2004 to 2021

BackgroundMental health promotion programs have included online strategies in their repertoire. Likewise, there has been an increasing utilization of online mental health information. Thus, there may be a need to explore the utilization of online information for depressive disorders. In doing so, it can reveal public expectations, needs, and online venues that can be used for depression information programs. MethodsThis infodemiological study explored the worldwide searches for major depressive disorder and persistent depressive disorder using relative search volumes (RSV) and top and rising related queries and topics from Google Trends. RSV is a value that represents the frequency or volume of searches normalized against the largest search volume in the study period and geography. Top and rising search-related queries and topics are terms and topics that online users also input into the Google search engine related to the keyword of interest. After describing the data, future RSVs were predicted using ARIMA. ResultsThe findings revealed that searches for depressive disorders decreased and may further decrease in succeeding years. It also revealed increasing searches for diagnostics criteria, including DSM-5. There was also increased public interest in portraying depression. It also found a digital divide in searches for depressive disorders, where high-income countries searched for more online information for depressive disorders. ConclusionThis study findings’ highlights the needs and opportunities in online information for depressive disorders. Nonetheless, further studies are needed to understand the utilization and effects of online information about depressive disorders in improving mental health promotion and literacy.

The Associations between eMental Health Literacy, Barriers to Mental Health Services, and Psychological Distress in Older Adults.

Building on eHealth literacy and mental health literacy, this cross-sectional survey study examined associations between eMental health literacy (the degree to which individuals obtain, process, and understand basic mental health information online to inform mental health-related decisions), perceived barriers to mental healthcare, and psychological distress. Data were collected online for 247 older adults in the United States. Higher eMental health literacy was associated with fewer perceived barriers to mental healthcare, in models conceptualizing psychological distress as an outcome of eMental health literacy and barriers to care (intrinsic, β = -0.36, p < .001; extrinsic, β = -0.24, p = .002) and as a covariate of eMental health literacy (intrinsic, β = -0.33, p = .001; extrinsic, β = -0.24, p = .003). Continued research and replication of findings are needed to better understand the potential role of eMental health literacy in reducing barriers to mental health services in later life.

Factors Contributing to Youth’s Exposure to Mental Health Misinformation on TikTok During the Covid-19 Pandemic

There is an increasing number of youth having access to smartphones and technology, especially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic (McClain, 2022). Social media, such as TikTok, grew exponentially during the pandemic alongside increased postings of mental health content. As the majority of TikTok users are young people, this paper examines the question: “what factors have contributed most to the increase in the use of potentially misleading online mental health information among youth during the COVID-19 pandemic?”. Reviewing previous research, this paper mainly applies descriptive and evaluation analysis to study the factors that prompted youth to seek mental health information on TikTok. This paper argues that barriers to mental health care and isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic have led young people to turn to TikTok for mental health information, in turn leading to youth to be more exposed to misinformation. This paper calls for improvements in mental health care accessibility for youth and identifies the root causes of increased misinformation exposure on TikTok. The increased mental health discussions that took place through TikTok should continue but it is imperative to explore ways to prevent information from overflowing and being unreliable for the users.

What makes helpful online mental health information? Empirical evidence on the effects of information quality and responders' effort.

Although online health communities are popular in supporting mental health, factors leading to the helpfulness of mental health information are still under-investigated. Based on the elaboration likelihood model and motivation theory, we incorporate two types of health information-related constructs, i.e., information quality (central route) and responders' effort (peripheral route), and adopt reputation as an extrinsic motivation to build our model. We crawl data from a Chinese online mental health community and extract 11 key variables, and then analyze the model with negative binomial regression. The empirical results indicate that the effect of the length of health information on its helpfulness votes is positively significant, while the effect of readability of health information on its helpfulness votes is relatively negative. In terms of responders' effort, both the timelines of the response and interactive feedback have a significant positive impact on helpfulness of health information votes, while these effects are negatively moderated by the online reputation of responders. This study contributes to the literature on information evaluation mechanisms in online health communities.

Googling “mental health” after mental health legislation and during the COVID-19 pandemic: an infodemiological study of public interest in mental health in the Philippines

Background Public interest in mental health in the Philippines can change after the Mental Health (MH) act approval and during the COVID-19 pandemic. To determine these changes, online searches in Google can be analyzed as an alternative measure. Aims To determine the trends of public interest in mental health before and after the MH act approval and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method Aggregated search volumes for mental health using the keyword, “Mental Health (Topic)” were gathered from Google Trends. Search volume indices (SVIs), and related queries were analyzed. SVIs from the different periods were compared using means, t test, ANOVA, and ARIMA. Results Public interest in mental health increased after the MH Act approval and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The top and rising related queries revolved around mental health definitions, translations, factors, services, policy, adverse mental state, and its context during the pandemic. Conclusions These increased public interests may stem from aspirations for mental health after legislation and higher mental health needs during the pandemic. Related queries may indicate that the public may be using online information to search for mental health services and concepts. Thus, there is a need to improve reliable and trustworthy online mental health information and services.

TikTok and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Cross-Sectional Study of Social Media Content Quality.

Social media platforms are increasingly being used to disseminate mental health information online. User-generated content about attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most popular health topics on the video-sharing social media platform TikTok. We sought to investigate the quality of TikTok videos about ADHD. The top 100 most popular videos about ADHD uploaded by TikTok video creators were classified as misleading, useful, or personal experience. Descriptive and quantitative characteristics of the videos were obtained. The Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool for Audiovisual Materials (PEMAT-A/V) and Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark criteria were used to assess the overall quality, understandability, and actionability of the videos. Of the 100 videos meeting inclusion criteria, 52% (n = 52) were classified as misleading, 27% (n = 27) as personal experience, and 21% (n = 21) as useful. Classification agreement between clinician ratings was 86% (kappa statistic of 0.7766). Videos on the platform were highly understandable by viewers but had low actionability. Non-healthcare providers uploaded the majority of misleading videos. Healthcare providers uploaded higher quality and more useful videos, compared to non-healthcare providers. Approximately half of the analyzed TikTok videos about ADHD were misleading. Clinicians should be aware of the widespread dissemination of health misinformation on social media platforms and its potential impact on clinical care.

Quality evaluation of digital voice assistants for the management of mental health conditions

&lt;abstract&gt;&lt;sec&gt; &lt;title&gt;Background&lt;/title&gt; &lt;p&gt;Digital voice assistants (DVAs) are gaining increasing popularity as a tool for accessing online mental health information. However, the quality of information provided by DVAs is not known. This study seeks to evaluate the quality of DVA responses to mental health-related queries in relation to six quality domains: comprehension ability, relevance, comprehensiveness, accuracy, understandability and reliability.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/sec&gt;&lt;sec&gt; &lt;title&gt;Materials and methods&lt;/title&gt; &lt;p&gt;Four smartphone DVAs were evaluated: Apple Siri, Samsung Bixby, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. Sixty-six questions and answers on mental health conditions (depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and bipolar disorder) were compiled from authoritative sources, clinical guidelines and public search trends. Three evaluators scored the DVAs from an in-house-developed evaluation rubric. Data were analyzed by using the Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon rank sum tests.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/sec&gt;&lt;sec&gt; &lt;title&gt;Results&lt;/title&gt; &lt;p&gt;Across all questions, Google Assistant scored the highest (78.9%), while Alexa scored the lowest (64.5%). Siri (83.9%), Bixby (87.7%) and Google Assistant (87.4%) scored the best for questions on depression, while Alexa (72.3%) scored the best for OCD questions. Bixby scored the lowest for questions on general mental health (0%) and OCD (0%) compared to all other DVAs. In terms of the quality domains, Google Assistant scored significantly higher for comprehension ability compared to Siri (100% versus 88.9%, p &amp;lt; 0.001) and Bixby (100% versus 94.5%, p &amp;lt; 0.001). Moreover, Google Assistant also scored significantly higher than Siri (100% versus 66.7%, p &amp;lt; 0.001) and Alexa (100% versus 75.0%, p &amp;lt; 0.001) in terms of relevance. In contrast, Alexa scored the worst in terms of accuracy (75.0%), reliability (58.3%) and comprehensiveness (22.2%) compared to all other DVAs.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/sec&gt;&lt;sec&gt; &lt;title&gt;Conclusion&lt;/title&gt; &lt;p&gt;Overall, Google Assistant performed the best in terms of responding to the mental health-related queries, while Alexa performed the worst. While the comprehension abilities of the DVAs were good, the DVAs had differing performances in the other quality domains. The responses by DVAs should be supplemented with other information from authoritative sources, and users should seek the help and advice of a healthcare professional when managing their mental health conditions.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/sec&gt;&lt;/abstract&gt;

Research to Clinical Practice-Youth seeking mental health information online and its impact on the first steps in the patient journey.

Online searches about anxiety and depression are recorded every 3-5s. As such, information and communication technologies (ICT) have enormous potential to enable or impair help-seeking and patient-professional interactions. Youth studies indicate that ICT searches are undertaken before initial mental health consultations, but no publications have considered how this online activity affects the first steps of the patient journey in youth mental health settings. State-of-the-art review using an iterative, evidence mapping approach to identify key literature and expert consensus to synthesize and prioritise clinical and research issues. Adolescents and young adults are more likely to seek health advice via online search engines or social media platforms than from a health professional. Young people not only search user-generated content and social media to obtain advice and support from online communities but increasingly contribute personal information online. A major clinical challenge is to raise professional awareness of the likely impact of this activity on mental health consultations. Potential strategies range from modifying the structure of clinical consultations to ensure young people are able to disclose ICT activities related to mental health, through to the development and implementation of 'internet prescriptions' and a youth-focused 'toolkit'.

Factors affecting perception of Indian adolescent students toward interactive online mental health information during COVID-19

PurposeThis study aims to identify the critical factors affecting the perception of adolescent students toward interactive online mental health information available on health-related websites.Design/methodology/approachThe primary data was collected with the help of an online self–structured questionnaire. The questionnaire includes the identified variables extracted from previous literature related to the mental health information websites using the Likert scale. The respondents include the adolescent school students belonging to the northern region of India: semi-urban/rural locations of Uttar Pradesh (Agra and Mathura) and urban cities (Faridabad, Gaziabad, Delhi and NCR). The criteria for selecting respondents were that students must have visited any online health information-related websites at least once. Exploratory factor analysis was used to explore the factors with the help of SPSS.20.FindingsThe identified factors that include information delivery medium/mode, websites’ navigation structure, customized information or content, ability to form a virtual relationship and supplementary features of the websites may benefit the health communication system of any country and the health-care industry.Research limitations/implicationsThere are some limitations such as a limited number of respondents and even on that sample was taken for teenagers; thereby creating fewer generalizations related to the present context. Further, only exploratory factor analysis is applied in the study to identify the factors but future researchers may proceed to develop the conceptual model of perception toward online information with the help of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling techniques.Practical implicationsThe results of this study are useful for government officials especially those related to the ministry of health care and public health organizations of various countries, who usually invest in co-designing authentic, reliable and high interactive online information-sharing websites.Social implicationsThe results of the study will facilitate the various social child welfare associations and non-governmental organizations that are usually involved in the holistic development of adolescents. The identified factors can be seriously taken into considerations by these associations while they are formulating any on line websites for sharing health-related information to adolescents.Originality/valueThe study is unique as it provides insight into the opinion of the adolescent students, primarily upon encountering the online mental health information concerning the Indian perspective. Future researchers, health-care policymakers and health-care professionals may use the study to capture a complete picture of a relevant phenomenon in their work.

Mental Health Services Data Dashboards for Reporting to Australian Governments during COVID-19.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has been providing support to the Australian Government Department of Health to report on mental health-related data to Australian governments on a frequent basis since April 2020 in the form of COVID-19 mental health services data dashboards. These dashboards feature extensive use of data visualizations which illustrate the change in mental health service use over time as well as comparisons with pre-pandemic levels of service use. Data are included from the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS), Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS/RPBS), Australian Government-funded crisis and support organizations, and key findings from emerging research. Demand for telehealth, crisis and support organizations and online mental health information services, in particular, have increased during the pandemic. The dashboards incorporate both new and existing data sources and represent an innovative way of reporting mental health services data to Australian governments. The reporting has enabled timely, targeted adjustments to mental health service delivery during the pandemic with improved cooperative data sharing arrangements having the potential to yield ongoing benefits.

Forecasting the Suitability of Online Mental Health Information for Effective Self-Care Developing Machine Learning Classifiers Using Natural Language Features.

Background: Online mental health information represents important resources for people living with mental health issues. Suitability of mental health information for effective self-care remains understudied, despite the increasing needs for more actionable mental health resources, especially among young people. Objective: We aimed to develop Bayesian machine learning classifiers as data-based decision aids for the assessment of the actionability of credible mental health information for people with mental health issues and diseases. Methods: We collected and classified creditable online health information on mental health issues into generic mental health (GEN) information and patient-specific (PAS) mental health information. GEN and PAS were both patient-oriented health resources developed by health authorities of mental health and public health promotion. GENs were non-classified online health information without indication of targeted readerships; PASs were developed purposefully for specific populations (young, elderly people, pregnant women, and men) as indicated by their website labels. To ensure the generalisability of our model, we chose to develop a sparse Bayesian machine learning classifier using Relevance Vector Machine (RVM). Results: Using optimisation and normalisation techniques, we developed a best-performing classifier through joint optimisation of natural language features and min-max normalisation of feature frequencies. The AUC (0.957), sensitivity (0.900), and specificity (0.953) of the best model were statistically higher (p < 0.05) than other models using parallel optimisation of structural and semantic features with or without feature normalisation. We subsequently evaluated the diagnostic utility of our model in the clinic by comparing its positive (LR+) and negative likelihood ratios (LR−) and 95% confidence intervals (95% C.I.) as we adjusted the probability thresholds with the range of 0.1 and 0.9. We found that the best pair of LR+ (18.031, 95% C.I.: 10.992, 29.577) and LR− (0.100, 95% C.I.: 0.068, 0.148) was found when the probability threshold was set to 0.45 associated with a sensitivity of 0.905 (95%: 0.867, 0.942) and specificity of 0.950 (95% C.I.: 0.925, 0.975). These statistical properties of our model suggested its applicability in the clinic. Conclusion: Our study found that PAS had significant advantage over GEN mental health information regarding information actionability, engagement, and suitability for specific populations with distinct mental health issues. GEN is more suitable for general mental health information acquisition, whereas PAS can effectively engage patients and provide more effective and needed self-care support. The Bayesian machine learning classifier developed provided automatic tools to support decision making in the clinic to identify more actionable resources, effective to support self-care among different populations.

A comparative study of strategies for identifying credible sources of mental health information online: Can clinical services deliver a youth-specific internet prescription?

Adolescents and young adults undertake internet searches before and after attending mental health consultations, but they express concerns about how they can identify reliable online mental health information (OMHI). This action research project examines how clinicians might direct young people towards credible OMHI by analysing which search strategies are most helpful for developing an 'internet prescription' targeted at a youth audience. Recently qualified doctors undertook searches for OMHI about the diagnosis and treatment of seven mental health conditions. Rankings of websites in search results were compared with reliability and quality ratings derived from established evaluation instruments [the Brief DISCERN and the 12-item Health on the Net (HoN) tool]. Of 140 websites identified through seven Google searches, only 15% of those evaluated were categorized as high quality. About 17% of websites were selling a treatment or service and about 25% were regarded as untrustworthy. Also, higher rankings in the search results were not indicative of better quality OMHI (Wilcoxon signed rank test: Z=-5.28; p < .001). Although the HoN and DISCERN tools provided useful insights into the credibility of OMHI, investigators did not think either instrument could be recommended for independent use by youth. Our findings suggest that clinical services should take responsibility for identifying a range of credible sources of OMHI. The next step in translating the research strategy into clinical practice involves collaboration with young people to select those platforms most orientated to their needs and to develop rating instruments that enable youth to evaluate OMHI.