Development and Testing of a Mobile based Application to address Occupational Engagement among Individuals with Serious Mental Illness

This study aims to design, develop, and test a mobile application that facilitates occupational engagement for individuals with serious mental illness. The study consists of two phases.

The first involves a scoping review of literature to identify common issues in occupational engagement among people with SMI. Based on this review, a list of essential features, such as activity scheduling, reminders, progress tracking and psychoeducation, will be finalised in consultation with Computer Science faculty for feasibility.

The second phase includes app development and testing. The app will incorporate identified features and a web interface for therapists to monitor user engagement. Validation will be conducted by an occupational therapist, followed by a 4-week feasibility study with participants who get discharged from the psychiatric unit at Kasturba Hospital. Participants will receive training on app usage before discharge and will use the app post-discharge to engage in planned activities. Engagement metrics such as user check-ins, task completion and time use will be monitored via the web interface, and user feedback will be collected through an in-app survey. The app and data will be securely stored in a password-protected storage space, and the user will be logged out of the app after the study period.