JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Wellness Together Canada Portal (www.wellnesstogether.ca). Wellness Together Canada (WTC) was created in response to an unprecedented rise in mental health and substance use concerns due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with funding from the Government of Canada. It is a mental health and substance use website to support people across Canada, providing digital interventions and services at no cost. Two million people have visited the WTC portal over one year since its launch; however, rigorous evaluation of this potential solution to accessing mental health care during and after the COVID-19 pandemic is urgently required.

Objective:

To evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the Wellness Together Portal by conducting a randomized trial.

Methods:

The Let’s Act on Mental Health study is designed as a longitudinal randomized control trial (RCT), fully remote, equally randomized [1:1], double-blind, alternative intervention-controlled in the parallel group to conduct between Oct-April 2023 with a prospective follow-up study period of 26-weeks. This trial will evaluate whether digital intervention like WTC improves population mental health trajectories over time. The level of change in anxiety from W0 to W26 (Baseline to Final) over 6 months’ time-period is the primary trajectory of concern for mental health in the study.

Results:

This study is approved by the Research Ethics Board (REB) of CAMH (REB reference no: Version 7.0). REB will reapprove the protocol if it requires amendment. Participants will be screened and provided with a unique ID number to protect their personal information. An Electronic informed consent form (ICF) is prepared in REDcap to remotely obtain consent from the participants prior to enrolling them in the trial. A REDcap survey is also designed separately for participant’s eligibility screening, baseline, bi-weekly follow-ups, intervention monitoring and final assessment over the 26-week period. Participants will be allowed to withdraw at any time without penalty.

Conclusions:

This initiative provides a unique opportunity to match people’s specific unmet mental health and substance use needs to evidence-based digital interventions. Clinical Trial: ClinicalTrials.gov