Preventive Digital Mental Health for Children in Primary Schools: A feasibility study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sian M. Davies ◽  
Jenni Jardine ◽  
Kerry Gutridge ◽  
Zara Bernard ◽  
Stephen Park ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Primary School ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Reading Ability ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Mental Health Intervention ◽  
Digital Intervention

BACKGROUND Recent work across Greater Manchester reports that schools, teachers, and parents/guardians are increasingly concerned about the mental health and well-being of their children, but lack the resources, skills and time to identify or support those susceptible to poor mental health. Similar concerns have been expressed by parents and teaching staff across the UK. OBJECTIVE To embed a low cost, scalable and innovative digital mental health intervention in schools in the Greater Manchester area, in order to identify and provide timely support for children most at risk of developing mental health or related problems. METHODS Two components of a digital intervention: 1) Lexplore, a reading assessment using eye-tracking technology to assess reading ability; and 2) Lincus, a digital support and monitoring wellbeing platform were implemented in a primary school in Greater Manchester. RESULTS Overall, teaching staff and children found both components of the digital intervention engaging, usable, feasible and acceptable. However, despite widespread enthusiasm and recognition of the potential added-value from Headteachers during the consultation phases of the project, we met significant implementation barriers. CONCLUSIONS This study explored the acceptability and feasibility of a digital mental health intervention for schoolchildren. Further work is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the digital intervention and to understand whether assessing reading atypicality using Lexplore can identify those who require additional help and can also be supported by Lincus. This study provides high-quality pilot data and highlights the potential benefits of implementing digital assessment and mental health support tools within a primary school setting.

scholarly journals Evaluation of ReachOut.com, an Unstructured Digital Youth Mental Health Intervention: Prospective Cohort Study

10.2196/21280 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. e21280
Author(s):  
Bianca Lorraine Kahl ◽  
Hilary May Miller ◽  
Kathryn Cairns ◽  
Hayley Giniunas ◽  
Mariesa Nicholas
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Young People ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Retention Rate ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Mental Health Intervention

Background Young people experience a disproportionate burden associated with mental illness that Australia’s mental health care system is ill-equipped to handle. Despite improvements in the provision of mental health services, the rates of service utilization among young people remain suboptimal, and there are still considerable barriers to seeking help. Digital mental health services can overcome a number of barriers and connect young people requiring support; however, the evidence base of digital interventions is limited. Objective The aim of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a brief, self-directed, unstructured digital intervention, ReachOut.com (hereafter ReachOut), in reducing depression, anxiety, stress, and risk of suicide. Methods A cohort of 1982 ReachOut users participated in a 12-week longitudinal study, with a retention rate of 81.18% (1609/1982) across the duration of the study. Participants completed web-based surveys, with outcome measures of mental health status and suicide risk assessed at 3 time points across the study period. Results The results demonstrated that over the 12-week study period, young people using ReachOut experienced modest yet significant reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Significant, albeit modest, reductions in the proportion of participants at high risk of suicide were also observed. Conclusions The findings of this research provide preliminary evidence of the promise of an unstructured digital mental health intervention, ReachOut, in alleviating symptoms of mental ill-health and promoting well-being in young people. These findings are particularly important given that digital services are not only acceptable and accessible but also have the potential to cater to the diverse mental health needs of young people at scale, in a way that other services cannot.

scholarly journals Bounce Forward: A School-Based Prevention Programme for Building Resilience in a Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Context

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Buket Kara ◽  
Rochelle Morris ◽  
Alice Brown ◽  
Pauline Wigglesworth ◽  
Joshua Kania ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Young People ◽  
Protective Factors ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Prevention Programme ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged ◽  
School Based ◽  
Building Resilience

Socioeconomic status is a strong predictor of normative development and well-being in young people. It is well-known that growing up in a socioeconomically disadvantaged context may lead to negative outcomes, both in childhood and in adulthood. Early intervention and prevention programmes are crucial for building resilience and improving health, well-being and equity. Bounce Forward is a school-based prevention programme implemented in Blackpool, a town in the United Kingdom facing multiple challenges. It was part of a whole town resilience approach and nascent global social movement known as the “Resilience Revolution.” Between 2017 and 2019, the programme was delivered in all Year 5 classes at every primary school in Blackpool (nschool = 36), reaching out to 3,134 students (ages 9–10; 50.4% male). The programme aimed to increase resilience in young people by building knowledge and skills about mental health and resilience through 10 sessions. In the current study, we longitudinally examined a range of protective factors, which are relevant to young people's resilience, as well as their mental health outcomes at three time points: before they participated in Bounce Forward, at the end of the programme, and 3–5 months later, when they started Year 6. The current sample included 441 Year 5 students (54.2% male) from 11 primary schools in Blackpool. Nineteen teaching staff also participated in the study and provided qualitative data regarding the impact of the programme on their students. Results showed improvement in some areas of young people's resilience after taking part in Bounce Forward. We also identified gender differences in several protective factors, indicating that boys may need further support. Teaching staff highlighted improvements in various areas; and also observed that their students have been using the strategies that they learnt from the programme. Altogether, findings suggested that young people benefitted from Bounce Forward. The programme is sustainable, offering a free to download teacher resource pack that allows schools to self-deliver it.

scholarly journals Mindfulness-Based Trauma Recovery for Refugees (MBTR-R): Randomized Waitlist-Control Evidence of Efficacy and Safety

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Reebs ◽  
Kim Yuval ◽  
Yuval Hadash ◽  
Solomon Gebreyohans Gebremariam ◽  
Amit Bernstein
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Mental Health Intervention ◽  
Trauma Recovery ◽  
Post Intervention ◽  
Waitlist Control ◽  
Trauma History ◽  
Refugees And Asylum Seekers

Background: Worldwide, refugees and asylum seekers suffer at high rates from trauma- and stress-related mental health problems. We thus developed Mindfulness-Based Trauma Recovery for Refugees (MBTR-R) – a 9-week, mindfulness- and compassion-based, trauma-sensitive and socio-culturally adapted, group intervention for refugees and asylum seekers. Aims: We assessed whether MBTR-R is an efficacious and safe mental health intervention for traumatized asylum seekers. Method: We conducted a randomized waitlist-control trial of MBTR-R among a community sample of 158 Eritrean asylum seekers (46.2% female, 53.8% male) with severe trauma history and ongoing post-migration stress. Results: Eighty-three of 98 participants randomized to MBTR-R and 48 of 60 randomized to waitlist-control condition were prospectively retained and completed pre- and post-intervention assessment. Relative to waitlist-controls, MBTR-R intervention completers (> 4 sessions attended) demonstrated significantly reduced rates and symptom severity of PTSD, depression, anxiety and multi-morbidity – at post-intervention and at 5-week follow-up; as well as improved well-being at post-intervention, but not follow-up. Intent-To-Treat sample effects were identical, though smaller in magnitude. Second, intervention effects were not dependent on key demographic factors, post-migration living difficulties or trauma history severity. Finally, no MBTR-R participant demonstrated lasting clinically significant deterioration in any of the monitored symptoms or well-being. Importantly, MBTR-R appears to be efficacious and safe for highly traumatized and chronically stressed asylum seekers in an urban post-displacement setting. High attendance and low study attrition suggest that MBTR-R may be a feasible and acceptable mental health intervention among asylum seekers. Due to its brief intervention format and group-based delivery, MBTR-R may be readily implemented and well-suited for scaling. Considering fast-growing human rights and mental health crisis of forced displacement, and extensive barriers to mental health intervention delivery among refugees and asylum seekers, observed MBTR-R efficacy and safety are promising.

scholarly journals Evaluation of ReachOut.com, an Unstructured Digital Youth Mental Health Intervention: Prospective Cohort Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bianca Lorraine Kahl ◽  
Hilary May Miller ◽  
Kathryn Cairns ◽  
Hayley Giniunas ◽  
Mariesa Nicholas
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Young People ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Retention Rate ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Mental Health Intervention

BACKGROUND Young people experience a disproportionate burden associated with mental illness that Australia’s mental health care system is ill-equipped to handle. Despite improvements in the provision of mental health services, the rates of service utilization among young people remain suboptimal, and there are still considerable barriers to seeking help. Digital mental health services can overcome a number of barriers and connect young people requiring support; however, the evidence base of digital interventions is limited. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a brief, self-directed, unstructured digital intervention, ReachOut.com (hereafter ReachOut), in reducing depression, anxiety, stress, and risk of suicide. METHODS A cohort of 1982 ReachOut users participated in a 12-week longitudinal study, with a retention rate of 81.18% (1609/1982) across the duration of the study. Participants completed web-based surveys, with outcome measures of mental health status and suicide risk assessed at 3 time points across the study period. RESULTS The results demonstrated that over the 12-week study period, young people using ReachOut experienced modest yet significant reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Significant, albeit modest, reductions in the proportion of participants at high risk of suicide were also observed. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this research provide preliminary evidence of the promise of an unstructured digital mental health intervention, ReachOut, in alleviating symptoms of mental ill-health and promoting well-being in young people. These findings are particularly important given that digital services are not only acceptable and accessible but also have the potential to cater to the diverse mental health needs of young people at scale, in a way that other services cannot.

Design And Implementation Of An Integrated Mental Health Intervention In A Policing Context

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia Papas ◽  
Anthony D. LaMontagne ◽  
Allison J. Milner ◽  
Amanda Allisey ◽  
Andrew J. Noblet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Intervention ◽  
Mental Health Intervention ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
Integrated Mental Health
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