Clarigent Health, a technology company building a clinical decision support tool for mental health professionals, is partnering with The Children's Home of Cincinnati, a leading provider of education and mental health treatment for children facing significant challenges, to complete a pilot study using Clarigent's mobile decision support app. The Clarigent app uses artificial intelligence and advanced algorithms to analyze linguistic and vocal characteristics collected during therapy sessions, in this case for clients of The Children's Home. The app is designed as decision support software for the detection of early indicators of suicidality, violence and certain mental health disorders.
"This technology was invented in response to a need expressed by medical professionals who work with young people in crisis," said Don Wright, CEO of Clarigent Health. "Are there early warning signs that, if detected, can guide a young person's treatment to the correct options and avert a crisis? This study is an important first step in moving the technology from the hospital and research bench, into the real world where kids are every day."
In the pilot called CAMPUS (Classification and Assessment of Mental Health Performance Using Schematics), 20 therapists working in multiple elementary, middle and high school settings in southwest Ohio will deploy the mobile app to record regularly scheduled sessions with students. Participation in the pilot and recording requires the consent of the student and parent or guardian. The schools have also granted consent.
The CAMPUS pilot marks the debut of the Clarigent app in a school environment. Previous clinical studies have tested the technology in hospital and emergency room ER settings, with results published in peer-reviewed journals.
The goals for this first phase are to show the app can be integrated into a normal therapy session without interfering with the session, and to ensure the app can receive audio of sufficient quality in a school setting to enable analysis by the app. Investigators hope to obtain 400- 600 recordings in this initial phase, before progressing to a larger study in the fall involving several thousand students. The fall study will include control participants from the general student population in addition to screening for a more diverse set of behavioral health conditions.
"The Children's Home of Cincinnati is proud to partner with the team at Clarigent Health on cutting edge innovations designed to save lives," said John Banchy, president and CEO of The Children's Home of Cincinnati. "Our 155 year legacy has been a story of adapting to reflect the needs of the community we serve, and we are frequently and tragically reminded the current need is significant. This technology, which has the potential to change how mental health services are administered on a global scale, could become a modern cornerstone in that story."
Clarigent Health, based in Mason, Ohio, was formed in 2018 to commercialize technology originating from Cincinnati Children's Hospital. The technology is designed to analyze linguistic and vocal characteristics of sessions between health care professionals and patients to provide a near real-time assessment of a patient at risk for suicide or mental health conditions. Clinicians, who make the ultimate decisions on diagnosis and treatment, can use the app's assessment and recommendations to inform and guide their care decisions.
Source: https://clarigenthealth.com/
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