Mental health research spotlight: children, adolescents and parents/caregivers

During this seminar, you will hear about three research projects from the Centre for Mental Health Research focused on children, adolescents and parents/caregivers.

Abstract

1. Best practice and principles for implementing Patient-Reported Experience Measures (PREMs) with children and young people

Patient Reported Experience Measures (PREMs) are increasingly integrated into health services, enabling continuous assessment of client experience, service accessibility and service quality. However, the voices of children and adolescents are often excluded from these assessments. Our team conducted a series of literature reviews, designed in collaboration with the ACT Child and Youth Mental Health Sector Alliance, collating evidence for best practice when using PREMs in youth health, mental health and community services. This presentation will provide a synthesised overview of review findings, highlighting key considerations for the selection, implementation, and use of PREMs in Australian child and adolescent mental health services.

2. Development and evaluation of a web-based mental health and suicide gatekeeper resource for parents

Parents and caregivers play a key role in recognising early signs of mental distress and facilitating access to support for their children, yet often lack the confidence and knowledge to respond effectively. While gatekeeper training programs can improve knowledge and skills, few are specifically designed for parents.  In collaboration with the Black Dog Institute, our team addressed this gap by exploring parents’ mental health information needs, which informed the development of Recognise, Respond and Support – A Parent’s Guide to Youth Mental Health. The effectiveness of this resource was subsequently evaluated in a randomised controlled trial. This presentation will describe the development of the resource and present findings from the trial.

3. Evaluation of the Thriving Minds emotion literacy program in ACT primary schools

Many young people do not seek or receive adequate professional support for mental health problems. Help-seeking interventions can bridge this treatment gap, however, few currently focus on primary-school children. This presentation discusses the effectiveness of an emotion literacy program aimed at increasing literacy, reducing stigma and promoting help-seeking in children aged 7-10 years. Delivered as a school-based program (N=487), Thriving Minds was evaluated in a two-arm pragmatic cluster-controlled trial with assessments at pre-intervention, post-intervention and 12-week follow-up.

Speakers

1. Alyssa Morse. Alyssa is a Research Fellow at CMHR, conducting a program of research in youth mental health and family caring, focused on genuine lived experience involvement and the mixed-methods evaluation of innovative prevention and care models for young people.
2. Sonia McCallum. Sonia is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Mental Health Research. Her research focuses on understanding and improving the mental health of children, young people, and their parents, with particular interests in prevention, help-seeking, and the evaluation of mental health services and interventions.
3. Alison Calear. Alison is a Professor and Co-Head at the Centre for Mental Health Research. Her research focuses on youth mental health, eHealth and the prevention and early intervention of anxiety, depression, suicide and self-harm.