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The approach is designed to shift these facilities toward learning health systems that capture and use data from routine clinical practice to improve care quality, accountability, and population mental health outcomes. It addresses a critical gap in routine, data-driven practices supporting outcome-based care and proposes a systemic, not merely technological, reorientation.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/transforming-mental-health-care-in-kenya-the-critical-role-of-routine-outcomes-monitoring-in-specialized-services/460435/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/transforming-mental-health-care-in-kenya-the-critical-role-of-routine-outcomes-monitoring-in-specialized-services/460435.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"dabgoudw","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-31","2026-09-30",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":24},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What is Routine Outcome Monitoring (ROM) and why is it emphasized in Kenya’s mental health context?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"ROM is presented as a strategy that continuously assesses patient outcomes and converts routine practice into actionable data. The article emphasizes it because Kenya’s mental health system has a critical gap in routine, data-driven practices that support outcome-based care.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"How would ROM help specialized mental health institutions become “learning health systems”?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"By systematically capturing data from everyday clinical encounters, ROM supports ongoing analysis and feedback loops. This enables institutions to improve care quality, strengthen accountability, and adapt services based on real-time evidence.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What changes are required beyond adopting ROM technology?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"The article stresses systemic reorientation: establishing digital standards for outcome tracking, creating protected time for data reflection, strengthening referral pathways, and aligning local practices with national health indicators.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},460435,1790901166,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":24,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":39,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":46,"preview_page_count":4},3985747860484,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c","Author Manuscr ipt Author Manuscr ipt Author Manuscr ipt Author Manuscript  \n\n| | HHS Public Access\u003Cbr>Author manuscript\u003Cbr>SSM Ment Health. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2026 January 10. |\n| --- | --- |\n\nPublished in final edited form as:  \nSSM Ment Health. 2025 December ; 8: . doi:10.1016/j.ssmmh.2025.100570 .  \nTransforming mental health care in Kenya: The critical role of routine outcomes monitoring in specialized services  \nClara Paza,* , Anne A. Obondob, Ian Kanyanyac, Caleb Othienod, Manasi KumareaGrupo de Investigación Bienestar, Salud y Sociedad, Escuela de Psicología y Educación, Universidad de Las América, Ecuador  \nb Department of Psychiatry, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya c Department of Mental Health, Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya d Department of Psychiatry, Maseno University, Kisumu, Kenya  \ne Institute for Excellence in Health Equity, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, NY, NY, United States of America  \nAbstract  \nThis short communication advocates for the strategic implementation of Routine Outcome Monitoring (ROM) systems within Kenya’s specialized mental health institutions, especially teaching and referral hospitals. The proposed shift aims to transform these institutions into learning health systems, dynamic structures that systematically capture and utilize data from everyday clinical practice to drive continuous improvement in care quality, accountability, and population mental health outcomes. Kenya’s mental health system, while advancing in policy and infrastructure, still faces a critical gap in routine, data-driven practices that support outcome-based care. ROM offers a practical and scalable solution to bridge this divide.  \nWe emphasize that this transition requires more than technological adoption. It demands a systemic reorientation: establishing digital standards for outcome tracking, allocating protected time for data reflection, strengthening referral pathways, and aligning local practices with national health indicators. These changes can help institutions become national exemplars, where evidence from clinical encounters informs policy, enhances training, and fosters research capacity.  \nROM is framed not as a technical add-on but as a transformative tool capable of reshaping how care is delivered, evaluated, and improved over time. It can anchor Kenya’s mental healthcare in real-time learning, ensuring that services adapt responsively to the needs of patients  \nThis is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ([http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)).  \n*Corresponding author. Universidad de Las Américas, Av. De los Granados y Colimes, 170503, [Ecuador. clara.paz@udla.edu.ec](Ecuador. clara.paz@udla.edu.ec), [clarapaze@gmail.com](clarapaze@gmail.com) (C. Paz).  \nCRediT authorship contribution statement  \nClara Paz: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Conceptualization. Anne A. Obondo: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Conceptualization. Ian Kanyanya: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Conceptualization. Caleb Othieno: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Conceptualization. Manasi Kumar: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Conceptualization.  \nDeclaration of competing interest  \nThe authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: All te authors report a relationship with National Institute of Mental Health that includes: funding grants.  \nAuthor Manuscr ipt Author Manuscr ipt Author Manuscr ipt Author Manuscript  \nPaz et al. Page 2  \nand communities. With political will, stakeholder collaboration, and thoughtful implementation, Kenya has the opportunity to lead among LMICs in establishing a mental health system that is evidence-informed, equitable, and sustainable.  \nKeywords  \nPractice-Based Evidence; Menta","cbCailYWe1busAG5","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCailYWe1busAG5","pdf",62988,"English","# Introduction\n## ROM as a transformative opportunity\n# Implementation approach","[{\"question\":\"What is Routine Outcome Monitoring (ROM) and why is it emphasized in Kenya’s mental health context?\",\"answer\":\"ROM is presented as a strategy that continuously assesses patient outcomes and converts routine practice into actionable data. The article emphasizes it because Kenya’s mental health system has a critical gap in routine, data-driven practices that support outcome-based care.\"},{\"question\":\"How would ROM help specialized mental health institutions become “learning health systems”?\",\"answer\":\"By systematically capturing data from everyday clinical encounters, ROM supports ongoing analysis and feedback loops. This enables institutions to improve care quality, strengthen accountability, and adapt services based on real-time evidence.\"},{\"question\":\"What changes are required beyond adopting ROM technology?\",\"answer\":\"The article stresses systemic reorientation: establishing digital standards for outcome tracking, creating protected time for data reflection, strengthening referral pathways, and aligning local practices with national health indicators.\"}]","Transforming mental health care in Kenya - The critical role of routine outcomes monitoring in specialized services | PDF",1790758464]