INTRODUCTION:
Adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV) in sub-Saharan Africa experience a high burden of psychological distress, HIV-related stigma, and challenges with treatment adherence, which contribute to suboptimal clinical outcomes, including unsuppressed viral load.1,2 In low-resource and fragile settings such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, access to adolescent-friendly mental health services remains limited. Digital health innovations may offer acceptable and scalable solutions to address these gaps.

METHODS:
JADOX was developed in October 2025 using a participatory co-design approach involving 23 adolescents aged 15–19 years living with HIV, two physicians, and two clinical psychologists in Lubumbashi. The platform includes self-guided mental health modules, a confidential expression interface, and a provider-facing alert system activated by predefined psychosocial risk indicators. A pilot implementation was conducted in November 2025 among the same adolescents receiving HIV care. Quantitative usage metrics and qualitative feedback from adolescents and healthcare providers were collected.

RESULTS:
More than 85% (20/23) of adolescents completed at least one full mental health module. Alerts indicating potential psychological vulnerability were triggered in 13% of users, enabling timely clinical follow-up. Adolescents reported high acceptability, perceived relevance, and ease of use of JADOX. Healthcare providers highlighted improved communication, early identification of psychosocial needs, and enhanced engagement with adolescents flagged by the system.

CONCLUSIONS:
This pilot experience suggests that JADOX is a feasible and acceptable digital tool to support mental health and psychosocial care among ALHIV in urban Democratic Republic of the Congo. Further studies are needed to assess long-term outcomes, clinical effectiveness, and scalability within routine adolescent HIV care programmes.