Mental Health Information Reporting Assistant (MHIRA)—an open-source software facilitating evidence-based assessment for clinical services

Abstract

Evidence-based assessment (EBA) in mental health is a critical aspect of improving patient outcomes and addressing the gaps in mental health care. EBA involves the use of psychometric instruments to gather data that can inform clinical decision-making, inform policymakers, and serve as a basis for research and quality management. Despite its potential, EBA is often hindered by barriers such as workload and cost, leading to its underutilization. Regarding low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), the implementation of EBA is recognized as a key strategy to address and close the prevalent mental health treatment gap.To simplify the application of EBA including in LMIC, an international team of researchers and practitioners from Tanzania, Kosovo, Chile, and Switzerland developed the Mental Health Information Reporting Assistant (MHIRA). MHIRA is an open-source electronic health record that streamlines EBA by digitising psychometric instruments and organising patient data in a user-friendly manner. It provides immediate and convenient reports to inform clinical decision-making.The current article provides a comprehensive overview of the features and technical details of MHIRA, as well as insights from four implementation scenarios. The experience gained during the implementations as well as the user-feedback suggests that MHIRA has the potential to be successfully implemented in a variety of clinical contexts and simplify the use of EBA. However, further research is necessary to establish its potential to sustainably transform healthcare services and impact patient outcomes.In conclusion, MHIRA represents an important step in promoting the widespread adoption of EBA in mental health. It offers a promising solution to the barriers that have limited the use of EBA in the past and holds the potential to improve patient outcomes and support the ongoing efforts to address gaps in mental health care.

Personalización en Psicoterapia: Estado Actual y Desafíos para su Implementación en Latinoamérica

“…Es así como se puede observar un incremento en las publicaciones vinculadas a esta temática en los últimos años (Paz et al, 2020). Un ejemplo de este desarrollo es el sistema MHIRA en Chile (Zimmermann et al, 2023), que facilita la recolección de datos, seguimiento de pacientes y brinda información clínicamente relevante para que los terapeutas puedan modificar sus intervenciones en función a la trayectoria del paciente (por ejemplo, brindar un módulo de psicoeducación). Este desarrollo va en línea con lo hallado por Errázuriz y Zilcha-Mano (2018) en un ensayo controlado aleatorizado en Chile, en el que se reportó que la utilización de un sistema de monitoreo con feedback sin brindar recomendaciones clínicas a los terapeutas, puede incluso ser perjudicial para el tratamiento.…”