This thesis presents seven of the author’s published works from 2020 to 2023 with the overall aim to gain new insights in the field of mental health sciences through analysis of various sources of real-world data. Process mining was applied to client data from a psychological therapies service for those experiencing mental ill health, to shed light on client engagement patterns in therapy, offering implications for service management and resource allocation. This work also highlighted a clear need for mental health promotion and prevention in the general population. A major focus of this thesis is the development, refinement and evaluation of a multilingual mental wellbeing chatbot (ChatPal) to support citizens living in rural areas. The chatbot content was co-designed with stakeholders, considering the needs of end users across five European countries. Usability testing informed successive iterations to make improvements to the chatbot. Results from a pre-post trial of the ChatPal chatbot found that participants had nonsignificant improvement in mental health outcomes. Additionally, client data from individuals who were assessed for a dementia diagnosis at a memory service were analysed. Key findings contribute to the utility of the Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination-III scale in making a differential diagnosis of dementia and mild cognitive impairment compared to controls. Complementary to this, a study on a reminiscence app (InspireD) for people living with dementia and their carers identified significant usage patterns and interaction with ecological momentary assessment questions. The work highlights the important role of face-to-face services, and gaps where digital interventions have potential to improve the wellbeing of the general population and support those living with dementia. This work demonstrates the utility of RWD analytics from providing service insights, to designing, evaluating and refining digital mental health and wellbeing interventions. Policy and practice recommendations and implications beyond the published papers are discussed.
- mental wellbeing
- dementia
- digital transformation
- chatbot
- digital mental health
Real world data driven insights in mental health sciences
Potts, C. S. (Author). Oct 2025
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis