Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale for the iPhone
Recently I wrote a post on mental health in the palm of your hand - exploring how technology and iPhone applications were being used to share medical and mental health information.
Following that post I contacted Dr. Harvey Castro at Deep Pocket Series to ask him about Sad Scale - a self screening Depression test and iPhone application tool.
Understanding the need for a Depression scale for children, Dr. Castro worked with our team to adapt the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale (KADS) for use on the Sad Scale application.
The KADS, along with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC), are now available on the Sad Scale. These applications will give you a graph on your progress and will also allow you to email your health care provider the results of the test.
The iPhone application is available now and can be downloaded for $0.99 from iTunes.
We are now adapting the Kutcher Generalized Social Anxiety Disorder Scale for Adolescents (K-GSADS-A) … stay tuned! (literally)
~ David Venn
Tags: Health 2.0, iphone, technology
August 5th, 2009 at 10:41 am
Oy…. scales. One day, when I’ve amassed enough wealth to not be concerned about public opinion, I’ll write an article or two about my experience with scales on an early-psychosis team. Here’s a though… they didn’t measure much, and the kids hated ‘em. I don’t blame them.
August 17th, 2009 at 10:40 pm
Excellent idea!
August 18th, 2009 at 11:51 am
Thanks for your comments Avrum and Jack. For us it’s about sharing mental health info with youth and technology is one of the best ways to do that.
The scales may not be an ideal adaptation, and perhaps they don’t measure much, but what they offer is a chance for young people to self-identify if they have a problem and to hopefully start that discussion with their doctor.
If they help one person it’s worth it!
August 19th, 2009 at 10:37 am
>> If they help one person it’s worth it!
I think it would be more realistic to support adults (parents, teachers, hockey coaches, etc) with technology that would raise awareness about mental health concerns and adolescence. And still, I wouldn’t use scales to accomplish the above.