3 - (SYM 29) Using Human-centered Design Methods to Redesign a Single-session Intervention for Adults on the Waitlist for Partial Hospitalization

Offering single-session interventions (SSIs) to people on the waitlist for partial hospitalization programs (PHPs) may help mitigate the adverse effects of waiting for care during this high-risk period. Behavioral activation (BA) is an ideal treatment to offer to waitlisted patients because it is a simple, well-established treatment, and is feasible to offer online as a self-administered SSI. We will describe the use of human-centered design methods to iteratively adapt an existing BA- SSI, originally developed for teens in the general population (Schleider et al., 2020), for the unique needs and context of adults on a PHP waitlist.

 To adapt the existing BA-SSI for the PHP waitlist, the intervention is being redesigned with PHP patients through multiple stages of development. We first surveyed patients (n=372; M_age=35, 7% Latinx, 7.8% Asian, 3.5% Black, 4% Multiracial) to understand their needs and interest in using an SSI during the waitlist period. Of these, 56.6% reported that they would have been interested in using an SSI while on the waitlist, 31.7% reported feeling unsure and 11.7% reported no interest. We then conducted co-design workshops with patients (n=10; M_age=35.3, 20% Latinx, 10% Asian, 10% Biracial) focused on further developing and refining the SSI and marketing/outreach materials. Co-design workshops were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using rapid qualitative analysis (Gale et al., 2019). In the next development phase (summer 2025), the SSI will be iteratively pilot tested and refined with 30 adults on the PHP waitlist.

 Patient feedback and design workshops uncovered several key priorities for the SSI and marketing/outreach materials. We will describe how participants think about the decision to try an online SSI upon receiving an invite during the waitlist period. We will discuss the need to appeal to users’ interest in preparing for treatment and ensure that it is easy to sign up and start the SSI. We will describe the types of content and features patients desired for the SSI, emphasizing the benefits of variety and personalization. We will highlight specific adaptations that were made to enhance the SSI’s contextual appropriateness (e.g., adding activities that feel more realistic for people with severe depression symptoms, describing BA using the same rationale used at the PHP). We will then present preliminary feasibility and usability data from the pilot trial. Lastly, we will discuss how our findings can inform the design and implementation of SSIs and other scalable interventions to support people on treatment waitlists.