Engagement and outcomes of children and adolescents enrolled in a technology-enabled mental health treatment platform: A retrospective cohort study: Differences by gender and age group.

Background: New digital technologies and platforms have enabled the additional provision of mental health services to counter the increased prevalence of mental health problems among children and adolescents. This real-world retrospective cohort study evaluates engagement levels and symptom improvement among children and adolescents receiving care through one such technology-enabled platform, and examines differences by gender and age group. Methods: We used descriptive, bivariate, and multiple logistic regression analyses to characterize the number of visits and depressive and anxiety symptom improvements among children and adolescents aged 9 to 17 with elevated depressive symptoms (n=9,853) and/or elevated anxiety symptoms (n=9,996) seen by a Grow Therapy therapist between January 2022 and April 2024. We also examined differences in engagement and outcomes by gender and age group. Results: Over half of the depressive and anxiety symptom cohorts, respectively, experienced a minimal clinically significant difference (MCID) in depressive symptoms (51.3%) and anxiety symptoms (57.8%). Although there were no significant interactions between gender and age group, females were less likely than males to meet criteria for MCID in the depressive and anxiety symptom cohorts despite being more likely to attend at least 3 provider visits. Conclusions: Preliminary findings suggest that therapists employed by Grow Therapy may have the potential to provide effective and engaging treatment for child and adolescent mental health. Gender differences in outcomes suggest the possible need for tailored care considerations for adolescent females.