Design, Develop, and Pilot-Test a Digital Platform to EnhanceStudent Well-Being:Protocol for a Mixed-Methods Study

Background: Well-being is a multidimensional concept and has been extended to many areas. Student well-being has garneredattention over the last decade due to concerns that have been raised. Digital health interventions have the potential to enhanceand improve student well-being. Objective: The objective of the study is to design, develop, and pilot-test a digital health platform to enhance student well-being. Methods: A sample size of 5000 participants will be recruited across Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, India. Students will be enrolledfrom Parul University in Vadodara, Gujarat, as well as Panimalar Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, PanimalarEngineering College, Panimalar Institute of Technology, and Panimalar College of Nursing in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Currentundergraduate and graduate students consenting to participate will be recruited using convenience sampling from these institutes.The study will collect baseline data to construct the student well-being index. Based on the risk profile, a random subset of thepopulation will be provided access to the digital health intervention, which will deliver tailored interactive messages addressingthe various dimensions of well-being among undergraduate and graduate students. The eligible study participants will be aged18 years and older, enrolled in these institutes, and willing to give their consent to participate in the study. Results: The proposed research is an unfunded study. The enrollment of the individuals in the study began in October 2022.Data gathered will be analyzed using SAS (version 9.3; SAS Institute) and results will be reported as 95% CIs and Pvalues. Conclusions: The proposed study will help to determine the factors affecting well-being among college students and help indesigning digital health interventions to improve the well-being of undergraduate and graduate students. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/39779