Can a phone app ease the wait for mental health care?
NCT ID NCT06239545
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether the JoyPop app can help 18-25 year olds in Northwestern Ontario better manage their emotions and reduce stress while they wait for mental health services. Participants will use the app at least twice daily and be compared to those receiving usual care. The goal is to see if a simple mobile tool can bridge the gap during long wait times.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- JoyPop mobile app
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could provide a simple, accessible tool to help young people manage emotions and reduce distress while waiting for professional mental health support.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 110 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The app is a temporary support, not a replacement for therapy or medication.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 110 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2024
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2025
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 25 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Youth must be on the wait-list for mental health services at St. Joseph's Care Group or Thunder Bay Counselling Centre and be between 18-25 years old. * Eligible youth will also need to be available to attend a virtual or in-person orientation session. * In order to download the JoyPop app, participants will need access to an iOS device (e.g., iPhone, iPad). Refurbished iPhones containing just the JoyPop app will be provided to participants to use for the duration of the trial if they do not have access to their own.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Lakehead University
RECRUITINGThunder Bay, Ontario, P7B5E1, Canada
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