TY  - JOUR
AU  - Vial, Stéphane
AU  - Boudhraâ, Sana
AU  - Dumont, Mathieu
AU  - Tremblay, Melanie
AU  - Riendeau, Sophie
PY  - 2023
DA  - 2023/8/22
TI  - Developing A Mobile App With a Human-Centered Design Lens to Improve Access to Mental Health Care (Mentallys Project): Protocol for an Initial Co-Design Process
JO  - JMIR Res Protoc
SP  - e47220
VL  - 12
KW  - co-design
KW  - human-centered design
KW  - e-mental health
KW  - design expertise
KW  - user engagement
KW  - patient-centered design
KW  - imaginary prototype
AB  - Background: Co-design is one of the human-centered design approaches that allows end users to significantly and positively impact the design of mental health technologies. It is a promising approach to foster user acceptance and engagement in digital mental health solutions. Surprisingly, there is a lack of understanding of what co-design is in this field. In this paper, co-design is approached as a cocreation process involving persons with a lived experience of mental health problems, health professionals, and design experts who lead and facilitate the overall creative process. Objective: This paper describes an initial co-design research protocol for the development of a mobile app that aims to improve access to mental health care. It highlights the characteristics of a co-design approach in e–mental health rooted in human-centered design and led by design experts alongside health experts. The paper focuses on the first steps (phase 1) of the co-design process of the ongoing Mentallys project. Methods: This Mentallys project will be located in Montréal (Quebec, Canada). The method approach will be based on the “method stories,” depicting the “making of” this project and reflecting adjustments needed to the protocol throughout the project in specific situations. Phase 1 of the process will focus on the desirability of the app. Targeted participants will include people with a lived experience of mental health problems, peer support workers and clinicians, and 3 facilitators (all design experts or researchers). Web-based sessions will be organized because of the COVID-19 pandemic, using Miro (RealtimeBoard Inc) and Zoom (Zoom Video Communications, Inc). Data collection will be based on the comments, thoughts, and new ideas of participants around the imaginary prototypes. Thematic analysis will be carried out after each session to inform a new version of the prototype. Results: We conducted 2 stages in phase 1 of the process. During stage 1, we explored ideas through group co-design workshops (divergent thinking). Six co-design workshops were held: 2 with only clinicians (n=7), 2 with peer support workers (n=5) and people with a lived experience of mental health problems (n=2), and 2 with all of them (n=14). A total of 6 facilitators participated in conducting activities in subgroups. During stage 2, ideas were refined through 10 dyad co-design sessions (convergent thinking). Stage 2 involved 3 participants (n=3) and 1 facilitator. Thematic analysis was performed after stage 1, while analytic questioning is being performed for stage 2. Both stages allowed several iterations of the prototypes. Conclusions: The design of the co-design process, the leadership of the design expertise throughout the process, and the different forms of co-design activities are key elements in this project. We highly recommend that health researchers partner with professional designers or design researchers who are familiar with co-design. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/47220 
SN  - 1929-0748
UR  - https://www.researchprotocols.org/2023/1/e47220
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/47220
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37606978
DO  - 10.2196/47220
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/47220
ER  -