Psychotherapists’ perspective of the use of eHealth services to enhance positive mental health promotion

Abstract

Objective: Keyes’s two-continua model of mental health proposes that mental illness and positive mental health are two separate, correlated, unipolar dimensions. eHealth services have been used to deliver mental health care, though the focus remained largely on symptom reduction and management of negative aspects of mental health. The potential of eHealth services to promote positive mental well-being, however, has not been tapped sufficiently. The present study aims to explore psychotherapists’ perspective on the feasibility of eHealth services to enhance positive mental health promotion. Methods: Seven focus group discussions were conducted among professionals (n = 38) who delivered psychotherapy to examine positive mental health in their practice. Responses related to the use of e-psychotherapy to promote mental well-being were extracted for use in a secondary analysis of data in this study. Thematic analysis of data via inductive approach was conducted to allow emergence of common themes. Results: Three main themes related to psychotherapists’ perspective on the feasibility of eHealth intervention in enhancing positive mental health were identified: (1) use of eHealth to educate and improve positive mental health; (2) concerns on incorporating psychotherapy into online services; (3) other factors that affect uptake or effectiveness of eHealth intervention for positive mental health. Conclusions: The study generally found support among psychotherapists for the feasibility of eHealth intervention in promoting positive mental health among clients. Potential difficulties in implementation and practicality concerns were discussed.