Current Research
Chatbot Mental Health Care Navigation
Drs. Kristin Kosyluk (MHLP) and Jerome Galea (SW) were awarded a grant from the USF COVID-19 Rapid Response Grant Program to develop a chatbot to screen COVID first responders for distress and navigate them to care that matches their level of distress, preferences, and readiness for change and that also helps to address stigma surrounding help seeking for mental distress. See below for a project abstract.
Mental Distress Among COVID-19 Responders
PI: Kristin Kosyluk (MHLP); Jerome Galea (SW)
Co-Is: Patricia Emmanuel, Morsani College of Medicine; Lucy Guerra, Morsani College of Medicine; Kathleen Heide, (Criminology); Giti Javidi, Muma College of Business, Sarasota-Manatee; Ming Ji, College of Nursing; Daniel Majchrzak, Information Technology Tampa; Stephanie Marhefka-Day, College of Public Health; Kathleen Moore, (MHLP & FMHI); Tempestt Neal, College of Engineering; Asa Oxner, Morsani College of Medicine; Alison Salloum, (SW), Ehsan Sheybani, Muma College of Business, Sarasota-Manatee; and Charurut Somboonwit, Morsani College of Medicine.
Community Partners: USF Morsani College of Medicine, USF Counseling Center, Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, Central Florida Behavioral Health Network, Tampa Bay Thrives, National Alliance on Mental Illness of Hillsborough County, This Is My Brave, Cope Notes, Inc.
Half of U.S. adults already report pandemic-related mental health problems, especially anxiety and depression. Frontline pandemic responders (doctors, nurses, paramedics, police, social workers) are especially vulnerable and often forgo mental health care because of stigma and fear of job loss. Several evidence-based mental health interventions exist but linking those in need to the right intervention at the right time is often complicated, delaying needed care. Researchers and their partners will develop and pilot-test a chatbot, "TABATHA" (Tampa Bay Area Treatment & Health Advisor) capable of screening pandemic responders for levels of distress and service preferences using text messages and helping them navigate existing mental health services.
In addition to the USF Rapid Response Grant Program funding, Drs. Galea, Kosyluk, and MSW student Tanner Baeder were accepted into the Fall 2020 I-Corps cohort. As I-Corps Fellows, the team gained knowledge and skills to potentially move a successful chatbot beyond the lab and into the commercial marketplace.
Publications and Presentations:
Kosyluk, K., Baeder, T.C., Tran, J., Egan, M.M., & Galea, J.T. Using a Chatbot to Address Psychological Distress Among First Responders. Poster presentation accepted for the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) 2021 Virtual Annual Conference, 26-29 September 2021.Available at: https://www.archives-pmr.org/article/S0003-9993(21)01241-7/fulltext
Kosyluk, K., Baeder, T., Green, K., DiEva, D., Tran, J.T., Bolton, C., Loecher, N., & Galea, J. (In Review; Sage Preprint Available: https://advance.sagepub.com/articles/preprint/Mental_Distress_Label_Avoidance_and_Use_of_a_Mental_Health_Chatbot_Results_from_a_U_S_Survey/21431079). Mental Distress, Label Avoidance, and Use of a Mental Health Chatbot: Results from a U.S. Survey.
Media Pieces:
Fox 13 News: Frontline Workers Struggling with Mental Health