Matson TE, Hermes EDA, Lyon AR, et al. A framework for designing hybrid effectiveness-implementation trials for digital health interventions. Ann Epidemiol. 2025;104:35-47. doi:10.1016/j.annepidem.2025.02.007
This article presents a novel, practical framework designed to aid researchers in designing high-quality studies that evaluate digital interventions for behavioral health. While there has been a call for research on the implementation of digital interventions for behavioral health, standardized guidance on how to conduct said research is lacking. This article provides initial guidance through a framework designed to enhance the effectiveness of digital interventions for behavioral health and strategies for researching their integration into real-world care. The framework was developed by reviewing key training resources and influential papers in the field. It outlines three main phases for designing these studies. First, researchers should define the research question by considering three important areas: the digital intervention itself, the level of clinical support required for patients to use it, and the strategies that encourage healthcare organizations to adopt and continue using it. Second, researchers should identify the important features of each area. Third, they design the trial, including the experimental approach and other study elements. These three areas are closely connected and should be considered together throughout the study design process; it is not something to consider only at one point in time. The framework is designed to help researchers generate stronger evidence about digital interventions, making the findings more useful for healthcare leaders who must decide whether to adopt these tools. It is intended as a starting point that should continue to evolve as digital health technologies and research needs change.