Title : Development of a mental health mobile application using community-based participatory research
Abstract:
Background: Mobile health (mHealth) applications have the potential to increase access to evidence-based mental health supports for early childhood educators and families. However, many digital interventions fail to adequately address the cultural, linguistic, and contextual needs of diverse communities, limiting engagement and sustainability. Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) offers a framework for developing technology solutions that are responsive to community priorities and promote equitable access to mental health resources. The Jump Start Go mobile application was developed in response to community-identified barriers to accessing timely mental health supports, including workforce shortages, limited availability of consultation services, and the need for culturally and linguistically responsive resources available on demand.
Objective: This presentation describes the development of the Jump Start Go mobile application, a technology-enhanced extension of the Jump Start Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) program. The goal of the application is to increase access to culturally responsive mental health supports for early childhood educators and families while extending the reach and sustainability of consultation services.
Methods: Guided by CBPR principles, the development process engaged early childhood educators, program directors, mental health consultants, parents, researchers, and technology developers in all phases of design and refinement. Stakeholders participated in focus groups, advisory meetings, usability testing, and iterative feedback cycles to identify priorities, refine content, and optimize user experience. Community feedback informed the design of application features, including multilingual resources, video demonstrations, family engagement tools, progress-monitoring supports, and an AI-enhanced feature that provides immediate guidance aligned with evidence-based practices.
Results: The CBPR process engaged stakeholders in the iterative development of a mobile application designed to support implementation of the Jump Start program, which serves 88 childcare centers, 440 teachers, and 2,640 children across Miami-Dade County. The resulting application provides 24/7 access to mental health resources in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole and was designed to complement a workforce of 26 mental health consultants. Stakeholder input shaped both content and functionality, ensuring cultural relevance and alignment with real-world implementation contexts. The application extends consultation supports beyond in-person visits by facilitating family-teacher communication, providing just-in-time coaching, and increasing access to evidence-based social-emotional strategies. Development leveraged an existing program infrastructure that has demonstrated strong engagement, including 96% child retention and 94% teacher retention over a 12-month period. Preliminary usability feedback indicated high levels of acceptability, perceived usefulness, and satisfaction among educators and consultants.
Conclusions: CBPR provides an effective framework for developing digital mental health interventions that are culturally responsive, community-driven, and implementation-ready. The Jump Start Go mobile application demonstrates how community-academic partnerships can leverage technology to expand access to mental health supports for underserved populations. Lessons learned from this development process may inform future efforts to create equitable, scalable mHealth solutions that address disparities in early childhood mental health services and strengthen implementation within community settings.
