Will Patients Accept Daily SMS as a Communication to Support Adherence to Mental Health Treatment?

Abstract

The aim of this article was to investigate the acceptability and feasibility of a daily Short Message Service (SMS) communication system to support patients attending weekly psychotherapy. The patients (N = 32) received daily SMS messages for the duration of a group therapy treatment program. Measures relating to engagement, treatment satisfaction, acceptability of the intervention and treatment outcome were administered. The patient satisfaction and acceptability were high, with patients reporting positive attitudes towards the SMS messages, particularly with regards to increased motivation and perceptions of support. Symptom reduction over the course of treatment was consistent with expectations for transdiagnostic group psychotherapy. The current study indicates that SMS is a well-received form of communication that can be used to support engagement in psychotherapy treatment programs. Future research should focus on exploring the range of adjunctive technologies that may be used to support face-to-face therapies.