Clinical Research Directory

Adapting the Penny Chatbot for Perinatal OUD Patients: COPILOT

To address both loneliness and engagement in perinatal and OUD care among perinatal women, the investigators plan to adapt an existing texting support chatbot, Penny, to make it appropriate for use by women who are pregnant and postpartum and dealing with OUD. The newly adapted chatbot, Penny COPILOT, will allow for two way short message service (SMS) messaging to respond appropriately and accurately to user generated input. The investigative team, in collaboration with the Penn Mixed Methods Research Lab (MMRL) and Penn's Way 2 Health Team, will use intervention mapping guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Science. The investigators will conduct a needs assessment, assemble an advisory board, engage in pretesting to ensure safety and refine content, and pilot test the resultant adapted Penny COPILOT in a sample of 20 perinatal women with OUD to evaluate acceptability, feasibility, and patient satisfaction. The goal is to develop and refine an acceptable, feasible, and satisfactory supportive texting chatbot to promote patient engagement in perinatal and OUD care and decrease perceived loneliness.