Digital Mental Health & AI Symposium
Exploring the Future of Behavioral Sensing, Machine Learning and Intervention for Mental Health
September 19, 2023 | 8:00am - 6:15pm | Hanover Inn Dartmouth, Hanover, NH
Event Overview
The Center for Technology and Behavioral Health at Dartmouth is sponsoring a symposium on innovative advances in digital mental health technology, with a particular focus on behavioral sensing, intervention, and the AI revolution. The symposium brings together cross-disciplinary leaders from both academia and industry to discuss challenges and innovative approaches for digital mental health.
This one-day event includes three keynote talks by pioneers in the field of digital mental health, including Munmun De Choudhury (Georgia Tech), Tanzeem Choudhury (Cornell Tech/HealthRhythms Co-Founder), and David Mohr (Northwestern). Additionally, several panels will discuss the impact of AI, student mental health, and the future vision and barriers in deploying scalable digital mental health technology. The symposium will conclude with a poster session and reception.
Symposium Organizers
- Andrew Campbell (Co-Chair): Computer Science, Dartmouth College
- Nick Jacobson (Co-Chair): Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College
- Lisa Marsch: Director of the Center for Technology and Behavioral Health, Dartmouth College
- Varun Mishra: Computer Sciences and the Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University
- Sonia Oren: Research Program Manager, Center for Technology and Behavioral Health, Dartmouth College
Agenda
8:00 - 8:30 am – Registration and Breakfast
8:30 - 8:45 am – Welcome: Andrew Campbell, Computer Science, Dartmouth College
8:45 - 9:00 am – Opening Remarks: Sian Leah Beilock, President, Dartmouth College
Sian Leah Beilock is the 19th president of Dartmouth. She is the first woman to have been elected president of Dartmouth by the Board of Trustees and began her tenure on June 12, 2023. President Beilock's full biography is available here.
The power of sensors, algorithms, and AI was supposed to fix much that is wrong with mental healthcare: poor measurements, robust tracking of response to treatments, and timely delivery of personalized interventions. Yet much of mental health care and care delivery today remains the same without leveraging the advances made by technology. Professor Tanzeem Choudhury, Information Science, Cornell Tech and HealthRhythms Co-founder will talk about the progress, the gaps, and thoughts on making Digital Mental Health a success story.
10:00 - 10:30 am – Morning Break
10:30 - 11:30 am – Panel Discussion – Navigating New Frontiers: Generative AI and Passive Sensing in Mental Health
As we move further into the digital age, our understanding and approach to mental health are being reshaped by cutting-edge technologies like passive sensing and generative AI. This panel brings together experts from diverse fields to explore this new frontier. Together, they will delve into the transformational impact of passive sensing/digital phenotyping on mental health practices, discuss the potential of generative AI to create novel therapeutic strategies, and address the profound ethical questions that these advancements bring.
Speakers:
- Nick Jacobson (Moderator): Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College
- Sarah Preum: Computer Science, Dartmouth
- Soroush Vosoughi: Computer Science, Dartmouth
- Deepak Ganesan: Computer Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Bill Hudenko: CEO, Everpage/Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth
11:30 - 12:30 pm – Making Digital Mental Health Work in the Real World
There is a large body of evidence from randomized controlled trials consistently showing that digital mental health interventions for common mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, are effective. However, effective real-world implementations in healthcare systems have continued to be a challenge. Professor David Mohr, Director, Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies; Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern will discuss design approaches and review a few implementations to highlight where some of the challenges are, and discuss policy and regulatory issues impacting wide-scale dissemination.
12:30 - 1:30 pm – Lunch
1:30 - 2:30 pm – Bias and Harms in Mental Health Measurement with Online Technologies
Social media offers great potential benefits for individuals seeking support for mental health, and machine learning models analyzing this data show promise for new intervention methods. However, these technologies raise concerns about bias and potential harm. Professor Munmun De Choudhury, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech, will discuss the relationship between bias and harm, highlighting how biased algorithms and assessment methods can unintentionally worsen mental health disparities and perpetuate stigmatization.
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm – Panel Discussion - Future of Student Mental Health
Addressing student mental health needs remains a critical challenge on college campuses. The panel, consisting of students, faculty, student deans, counseling center professionals, and well-being coordinators, discusses the current state of student mental health and future support directions on today's digital campuses.
Speakers:
- Andrew Campbell (Moderator): Computer Science, Dartmouth College
- Caroline Conway: Co-President of the Dartmouth Student Mental Health Union (MHU)
- Adithi Jayaraman: Co-President of the Dartmouth Student Mental Health Union (MHU)
- Mark Reed: Director of Dartmouth Health Service
- Natalie Hoyt: Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Students and Director of First-Year Initiatives
- Siddhant M. Babla: Wellbeing Program Coordinator, Student Wellness Center, Dartmouth College
3:30 - 4:00 pm – Afternoon Break
4:00 - 5:00 pm – Panel Discussion - Future of Digital Mental Health
Innovative digital mental health technologies using human behavioral data from smartphones, wearables, social media, natural language, speech, and computer interactions, along with AI, are poised to radically change the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness on a large scale. However, despite a decade of progress in the field of digital mental health, significant barriers still hinder the realization of this vision. In this panel, our keynote speakers will discuss strategies to overcome these obstacles to achieve widespread adoption of digital mental health technology.
Speakers:
- Lisa Marsch (Moderator): Director, Center for Technology and Behavioral Health, Dartmouth College
- Munmun De Choudhury: School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech
- Tanzeem Choudhury: Information Science, Cornell Tech/HealthRhythms Co-Founder
- David Mohr: Director, Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies; Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern
5:00 - 5:15 pm – Closing Remarks: Nick Jacobson, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth
5:15 - 6:15 pm – Poster Session and Reception
The Digital Mental Health & AI Symposium is sponsored by Center for Technology and Behavioral Health and in cooperation with the HealthX Lab and AIM HIGH Lab