Abstract for the symposium “Mobiletechnologies in psychiatry”

Presenter: Joel Swendsen, Ph.D.

Title: EMA for therapeutic interventions

The near totality of interventions in psychiatry relyon patients to actively participate in their own treatment, ranging from medicationcompliance to psychotherapy exercises. However, it is precisely in these daily life contexts that patients are paradoxicallythe least accompanied or assisted. While ambulatory monitoring techniques suchas the Experience Sampling Method or Ecological Momentary Assessment have been mostoften applied to identify risk factors or to test etiologic models, their abilityto deliver interventions at the moments that they are most needed in daily lifeis increasingly recognized. In parallel, there is a growing realization thatthe concept of personalized medicine is not limited to the human genome, but thatit also includes the unique lifestyles and environments of each individual. Mobile technologies can contribute to this objective by integratingperson-specific information that is difficult or impossible to utilize inclinical settings. This presentation will first discuss the therapeuticapplications of mobile technologies as a treatment aid, as well as theircapacity to personalize interventions for each patient. Recently completed andongoing studies will then be described that use mobile technologies as a meansof providing cost-effective treatment to the broadest possible population. Finally, the limitations of mobile technologies as a means of delivering interventionswill be reviewed in the goal of promoting the safe and ethical use of thisimportant resource for both patients and clinicians.