IMPACCT in the spotlight: building more accessible trauma care together with Thomas More

A new scientific article soon to be published in JMIR Formative Research highlights the development of IMPACCT, our digital decision-support tool for first-line professionals. The research came about through a collaboration with Thomas More – and that deserves a word of thanks.

What is IMPACCT?

Children with a refugee or migration background often carry profound experiences with them. For first-line professionals, it is not always easy to interpret behaviour correctly: what role does trauma play, what is culturally shaped, and what support does a child need at this particular moment? This is exactly the hesitancy to act that IMPACCT is designed to address.

IMPACCT is an online decision-support tool that helps professionals examine children’s behaviour in a structured way, reflect early, and make well-founded choices in their support. The tool builds on Solentra’s PACCT methodology: a community-based, culturally sensitive approach that brings care closer to people.

Grounded in research

To develop IMPACCT from the real needs of the field, substantial research was carried out. The researchers analysed 905 anonymised helpdesk questions submitted to Solentra between 2021 and 2023, mapping the recurring needs of professionals. Trauma-related concerns proved to be the most common, followed by anxiety, stress and depressive symptoms – most often in a family or school context.

Nineteen professionals then tested a first version of the tool. They reported that IMPACCT helped them reflect earlier and in a more structured way, eased some of the decision-making burden, and allowed them to better situate culture within the context of migration. Valuable feedback – including on the time required and integration into daily workflow – feeds directly into further development.

With thanks to Thomas More

This research did not come about through Solentra alone. It is a genuine collaboration with Thomas More University of Applied Sciences (Centre of Expertise Care and Well-being), with a contribution from Queen’s University Belfast. Where Solentra brought clinical practice, the PACCT methodology and its helpdesk experience, the research partners brought their expertise in psychology and technology.

We are sincerely grateful that they make their time, knowledge and professionalism available to developments on the ground. Because that is what it is all about: using technology to make mental health care more accessible and more effective for those who would otherwise struggle to access it. Collaborations like this between practice and research make possible an innovation that neither party could achieve on its own.

What’s next?

The article offers a first, evidence-based look at what a digital decision-support tool for first-line professionals can look like. The next steps are further technical refinement and, after that, research into the tool’s effectiveness in practice. To be continued.

About the publication

Van Bogaert CA, Jame B, Serneels GM, Van Daele T. A Digital Tool for Culturally Responsive Reflection and Case Conceptualization in First-Line Services to Support Children with a Refugee Background: Development and Usability Study. JMIR Formative Research, 2026. Open access (CC BY 4.0).

Want to know more about IMPACCT? Discover the tool at impacct.solentra.be.