# Applying Human-Centered Design to Inform Mobile Technology-Mediated Supervision with Lay Counselors in Kenya

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON · 2022 · $41,262

## Abstract

PROJECT ABSTRACT
Research indicates that evidence-based mental health treatments can be delivered via task-shifting, in which
non-professionals deliver care under supervision. However, the potential promise of task-shifting to reduce the
mental health treatment gap goes unrealized without empirical guidance on scalable and sustainable methods
to supervise lay counselors. Given the rise in access to digital technology worldwide, opportunities may exist to
leverage technology to supervise lay counselors. To maximize acceptability and feasibility in low-resource
settings, research on mobile technology supervision should be rooted in the needs of lay counselors and
supervisors. This project builds on a current NIMH-funded study, “Building and Sustaining Interventions for
Children (BASIC): Task-Sharing Mental Health Care in Low-Resource Settings” (R01MH112633), which aims
to test the effectiveness and implementation of Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) in two
government-supported systems in Kenya: Education (via teachers) and Health Extension (via community
health volunteers). Mobile technology (i.e., WhatsApp) emerged as a frequently used supervision support for
some counselors during the BASIC trial. This project capitalizes on an unexpected, naturally occurring
phenomenon within an already funded trial, and draws from human-centered design (HCD) techniques to gain
lay counselor and supervisor perspectives on using mobile technology to conduct clinical supervision. Study
aims are to: (1a) Investigate the ways mobile technology is currently being used to support supervision;
(1b) identify barriers and facilitators of technology-mediated supervision. We conduct qualitative
interviews with supervisors and lay counselors to answer research questions in Aim 1. (2) Engage
stakeholders to redesign supervision processes to leverage mobile technology. We employ HCD
techniques, such as brainstorming and roleplaying, in an in-person collaborative meeting with supervisors and
lay counselors to systematically develop and select three most optimal workflows to inform implementation of
mobile technology supervision in Aim 3. (3) Examine the acceptability, feasibility, and usability of mobile
technology supervision, as well as perceptions of effectiveness in a pilot trial. We examine differences in
these outcomes among lay counselors receiving supervision exclusively via mobile technology, compared to
counselors receiving standard in-person supervision. Study findings can help inform the potential for greater
reliance on lower-cost, existing mobile technology to provide clinical supervision in low-resource settings.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10478182
- **Project number:** 5F31MH124328-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
- **Principal Investigator:** Noah Shay Triplett
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $41,262
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-16 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10478182

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10478182, Applying Human-Centered Design to Inform Mobile Technology-Mediated Supervision with Lay Counselors in Kenya (5F31MH124328-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10478182. Licensed CC0.

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