Email reminders as a self-management tool in depression: a needs assessment to determine patients' interests and preferences.

We conducted a needs assessment to ascertain patients' interests and preferences for using email reminders ('E-minders') to assist in the self-management of their depression. The E-minders would help patients achieve remission by reminding them of their personal strategies for self-management and their personalized sources of support. Once patients had achieved remission, E-minders would be used to remind them of their original symptoms of depression so that they could monitor for recurrence. Results from a focus group with eight patients suggested that patients would be interested in using E-minders. However, they should not be used to replace aspects of treatment but rather to supplement existing depression treatment regimens.