Siesta

Digital CBT-i for People with Schizophrenia

Project Overview

The goal of the project is to develop a system that supports clinicians in administering CBT-i (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia) for patients with Schizophrenia and other cognitive struggles.

View Publication View Presentation (AAGP 2023)
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System Overview

The system is a full-stack software solution developed from scratch, utilizing Flutter for frontend (both mobile and web apps), and Node.js server hosted on Heroku connected to MongoDB cluster for scalable and reliable backend. The system overview diagram covering all major components are shown in the overview diagram (created by Jae Min Jeon).

Mobile App (SleepCatcher): Used by patients to complete sleep diaries every day to follow through CBT-i, with additional functions like progress checking and getting help. The UI is specially designed and iteratively improved based on patient feedback for maximal ease of use.

Web Portal: Used by clinicians or researchers to manage all devices (sleep trackers, phones) handed out to patients and collect their sleep data.

Siesta Server: Handles data communication between mobile app and web portal, integrating multiple sleep tracker device API data streams with periodic token refresh, and accessing and storing user information.

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Project Timeline

Project Initiation
Team formation, joining Dr. Ellen Lee's research lab.
Project opportunity provided as Engineering Psychiatry Research Project by UCSD Engineering department and UCSD Health.
Research & Problem Definition
Started Weekly meetings to understand the problem and formulate initial designs.
Development
Finished initial system implementation.
Beta Testing #1
Tested the system on lab members to obtain feedbacks to resolve some practicality issues.
Presentation
Presented the project at 2023 AAGP conference.
Obtain Feedback & Iterative Improvements
Begin to improve UI design based on direct feedback from people with schizophrenia.
Publication
Writing paper for publication.
Improve System Scalability
Refactored server codebase & changed to Heroku and MongoDB with CICD pipeline.
Beta Testing #2
Testing system at homes of people with schizophrenia.
Project Handover
Recruited new members for continued system improvements, testing, data collection, and publications.