Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41998267›Full record

ArticleJournal of general internal medicine2026

Differential Impact of a Digital Mental Health Engagement Platform on Black and Female Health Care Workers: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Trial.

Anish K Agarwal, Lauren Southwick, Rachel Gonzales, Lisa Bellini, David A Asch, Nandita Mitra, Lin Yang, Rachel Kishton, Sarah Beck, Mohan Balachandran and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Anish K AgarwalDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA. anish.agarwal@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2175-0196
Lauren SouthwickDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Rachel GonzalesDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Lisa BelliniDepartment of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
David A AschDepartment of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Nandita MitraDepartment of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Lin YangDepartment of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Rachel KishtonDepartment of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Sarah BeckCenter for Health Care Transformation and Innovation, Penn Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Mohan BalachandranCenter for Health Care Transformation and Innovation, Penn Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Courtney Benjamin WolkDepartment of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Raina M MerchantDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Funding

Assessing the effectiveness of a digital platform to support the mental health of healthcare workers in the response and recovery phases of COVID-19R01MH127686 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI MERCHANT, RAINA · 2021 to 2023
$3.4M
Mentoring and Patient Oriented Research in Cardiovascular Health and Digital Data ScienceK24HL157621 · NHLBI · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI MERCHANT, RAINA · 2021 to 2025
$615k
NHLBI NIH HHS K24 HL157621NIMH NIH HHS 1R01MH127686-01NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH127686
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

importanceHealth care workers (HCWs), particularly those identifying as female or Black, face disproportionate mental health strain. Digital mental health platforms have grown in popularity and, for health systems, may offer scalable solutions, but their differential impact across demographic groups remains understudied. DESIGN, SETTING, AND

participantsThis secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial enrolled 1275 HCWs from an urban academic health system between January and May 2022. Participants were randomized to usual care or proactive digital engagement via the Cobalt platform. Female and Black HCWs were oversampled to assess subgroup effects.

interventionMonthly digital outreach, including mental health symptom screening and linkage to resources via the Cobalt platform, compared with usual care. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Primary outcomes were changes in depression (PHQ-9) and anxiety (GAD-7) scores at 6 and 9 months. Secondary outcomes included well-being (WHO-5, WBI-9) and work productivity (LEAPS). Generalized linear models assessed HTE by gender and race.

resultsOf 1275 randomized participants (mean age 38.6 years; 83.4% female; 25.1% Black), both intervention and control groups showed significant reductions in anxiety and depression scores over time. No significant HTE was observed by gender or race for primary outcomes. Female HCWs receiving the intervention reported significantly greater improvement in work productivity at 6 months (LEAPS score difference: 1.70; p = 0.03). Black HCWs in the intervention arm showed a sustained improvement in depression scores at 9 months (- 2.21; p < 0.001), though adjusted models did not confirm statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: A proactive digital mental health strategy coupled with a well-being platform improved mental health outcomes across HCWs, with modest differential effects in productivity and depression among female and Black participants. These findings support the scalability of digital interventions and highlight the need for culturally tailored approaches to enhance equity and impact.

Identifiers

PMID41998267
PMCPMC13633835

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.