Abstract
Cross-cultural considerations and difficulties recruiting and retaining skilled workers in rural and remote regions may contribute to poorer service
use for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. However, electronic resources may provide the opportunity for remote workforces to deliver
structured, evidence-based, culturally appropriate treatments with limited training burden. The aim was to develop and determine the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of a new e-mental health resource (the Australian Integrated Mental Health Initiative [AIMhi] Stay Strong
App) for service providers working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Northern Territory. Eleven semi-structured interviews
were conducted with 15 service providers and managers from a range of rural and remote primary health care service settings in the Northern
Territory. All participants were given the resource to trial for at least 1 month before being interviewed about perceived barriers and enablers,
acceptability, and feasibility. Thematic analysis revealed support for the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of the resource among
service providers. Major themes identified included acceptability, building relationships, broad applicability, training recommendations, integration with existing systems, and constraints to implementation. This is one of the first studies to explore the acceptability of e-mental health
approaches for Aboriginal people among the remote health workforce. It is likely that e-mental health interventions, such as the AIMhi Stay
Strong App will assist services to deliver evidence-based, structured interventions to improve well-being for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
clients
use for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. However, electronic resources may provide the opportunity for remote workforces to deliver
structured, evidence-based, culturally appropriate treatments with limited training burden. The aim was to develop and determine the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of a new e-mental health resource (the Australian Integrated Mental Health Initiative [AIMhi] Stay Strong
App) for service providers working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Northern Territory. Eleven semi-structured interviews
were conducted with 15 service providers and managers from a range of rural and remote primary health care service settings in the Northern
Territory. All participants were given the resource to trial for at least 1 month before being interviewed about perceived barriers and enablers,
acceptability, and feasibility. Thematic analysis revealed support for the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of the resource among
service providers. Major themes identified included acceptability, building relationships, broad applicability, training recommendations, integration with existing systems, and constraints to implementation. This is one of the first studies to explore the acceptability of e-mental health
approaches for Aboriginal people among the remote health workforce. It is likely that e-mental health interventions, such as the AIMhi Stay
Strong App will assist services to deliver evidence-based, structured interventions to improve well-being for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
clients
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 60-69 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Australian Psychologist |
| Volume | 50 |
| Early online date | 5 Oct 2014 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
| Externally published | Yes |