Understanding Engagement With Digital Mental Health Technology in Mental Health Services: Multicenter Observational Study.

Background: Digital technologies can substantially improve mental health care by facilitating measurement-based care through routine outcome monitoring. However, their effectiveness is constrained by the extent to which these technologies are used by services, clinicians, and clients.

Objective: This study aims to investigate engagement with the Innowell platform, a measurement-based digital mental health technology (DMHT), to gain insights into the individual- and service-level factors influencing engagement.

"Prevalence of disordered eating and eating disorders among Norwegian university students before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, 2018 and 202.: The SHoT study.".

Objective: The prevalence of eating disorders (EDs) is increasing, but little is known about their trends among university students, particularly following COVID-19. This study examines prevalence in EDs and disordered eating (DE) symptoms among students in 2018 and 2022, focusing on gender and socio-demographic disparities.

Methods: Data were drawn from the Students' Health and Well-being Study (SHoT) in 2018 (n = 50 054) and 2022 (n = 59 544), a large-scale Norwegian survey covering full-time university students aged 18-36.

Recent Advances and Future Directions in Eating Disorder Treatments for Emerging Adults.

Purpose Of Review: There is increasing interest and exploration in tailoring eating disorder (ED) treatment for emerging adults/transition-age youth. This review provides a narrative update on research findings from 2021 to 2025.

Recent Findings: There has been continued development of ED-focused family therapy approaches for emerging adults, and we have also started to see the tailoring of existing individual treatments (e.

Exploring Patient Understandings of Navigation Services Within Alberta's Healthcare System: A Qualitative Study.

Introduction: Patient navigation was first envisioned to assist marginalized cancer patients access timely healthcare services by identifying and addressing social barriers to care. While this understanding of patient navigation may still hold for a subgroup of programs today, its expansion over the past 30 years has resulted in a diverse set of interventions with distinct care settings, patient eligibility criteria, navigator training requirements and program goals. This study aimed to explore patients' understanding of patient navigation programs to identify program features that are of particular value and importance to them.

'Multi-stressed': A qualitative study exploring the impact of the social determinants of health on access to digital mental health for youth and young adults in Alberta.

Background: Mental illness among youth (ages 15-24) is a critical and global public health issue. Youth's pathways to accessing mental healthcare are complex, non-linear, and mediated by the social determinants of health - including social, economic, environmental, and systemic factors. Digital mental health is recognised as a potential solution to address inequitable access to mental healthcare among youth.

Pandemic impact, mitigation strategies and peer support: a qualitative analysis of youth, parent, clinician and administrator perspectives.

Objectives: This study describes views on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorder symptoms in youth, as well as the impact on care, and the possibility of peer support as a mitigating strategy from the perspectives of youth and parents with lived experience with eating disorders, as well as clinicians and administrators.

Methods: A national purposive sample was recruited through websites and social media platforms. Those recruited were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire and to partake in an individual, virtual, semi-structured qualitative interview.

Transitions for youth and young adults with eating disorders and/or other mental health conditions: a Canadian guideline.

Background: Eating disorders (EDs) are severe mental illnesses with high rates of mortality, morbidity, and reduced quality of life. Their onset occurs during adolescence and early adulthood, coinciding with the critical transition from pediatric to adult care. To address the lack of guidelines to support ED transitions in Canada, this study developed evidence-based guideline recommendations.

The Occupation of Youth Peer Support Workers Within an Integrated Youth Services Initiative.

Youth peer support workers (YPSWs) use lived/living experience to provide support. However, there is a knowledge gap about service impact on YPSWs themselves. To understand (1) impact being a YPSW has on well-being, (2) experience of being a YPSW, and (3) barriers and facilitators of being a YPSW.

Using the service needs index to quantify complexity and identify treatment needs across youth mental health service populations: an observational study.

Background: Digital technologies can facilitate comprehensive mental health assessment of an individual's treatment needs, while also enabling data aggregation and analysis at the population or service level. The Service Needs Index (made up of clinical, psychosocial, and comorbidity components) collectively expresses a concise metric for the type, range, and complexity of young people's treatment needs. This study aimed to examine variation in the Service Needs Index across service settings and assess its potential to inform population-level mental health planning.

Exploring Youth Perspectives on Digital Mental Health Platforms: Qualitative Descriptive Study.

Background: The increasing prevalence of mental health disorders among youth underscores the need for accessible and effective interventions. Digital mental health (dMH) platforms like Innowell offer promising solutions by increasing access to mental health care for young people. Innowell is a web-based platform that supports youth mental health by providing personalized measurement-based care in collaboration with a youth's health care providers.

Longitudinal effects of neighbourhoods' material and social deprivation on psychological distress of adults in Canada.

Objectives: This nationwide longitudinal study investigates the impact of neighbourhood deprivation on psychological well-being of Canadian adults.

Methods: Utilizing data from the Longitudinal and International Study of Adults (LISA) spanning 2016, 2018, and 2020, we included individuals aged 15 and above across Canada. The 2016 and 2020 samples comprised approximately 17,700 and 12,700 respondents, respectively.

The Prevalence of Excessive Exercise in Eating Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: Individuals with eating disorders (EDs) often present with maladaptive behaviours such as excessive exercise (EE). The consequences of EE include physical injuries, increased risk of anxiety and depression, and impaired social functioning. No systematic reviews have been conducted on the prevalence of EE in EDs.

Are we out of the woods yet? Youth-developed recommendations on recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic: A national Delphi study.

Objectives: To generate concrete, youth-derived recommendations to support Canada's post-pandemic recovery from COVID-19 to support youth mental health and substance use (MHSU), economic, and educational recovery.

Methods: Using a virtual, modified Delphi, participants rated recommendation items over three rounds, with the option to create their own recommendation items. A priori consensus was defined as ≥ 70% of the entire group, or subgroups of youth (e.

Development of a Framework for Youth- and Family-Specific Engagement in Research: Proposal for a Scoping Review and Qualitative Descriptive Study.

Background: Youth and families play an indispensable role in health research, given their unique lived experiences and expertise. Aligning research with patients' needs, values, and preferences can significantly enhance its relevance and impact; however, recent research has highlighted various challenges and risks associated with youth and family engagement in health research. These challenges encompass the perils of tokenism, power imbalances and dynamics, questioning the motives behind engagement, and limited accessibility to patient-friendly training for patient partners, as well as inadequate training on patient engagement for researchers and the absence of equitable engagement tools.

Effectiveness of Patient Navigation During Transition to Adult Care: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Transition to adult care is a challenging and complex process for youth and emerging adults with chronic health and/or mental health conditions. Patient navigation has been proposed to improve care during transition, but previous studies have used single disease cohorts with a nonrandomized design.

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of a patient navigator service to reduce emergency department (ED) use among adolescents and emerging adults with chronic health and/or mental health conditions undergoing transition to adult-oriented health care.

Organizational factors impacting the implementation of a digital mental health tool in Alberta's mental health care of youth and young adults.

With mental health concerns on the rise among youth and young adults (age 12-24), increased mental health options include virtual care, apps and online tools, self-management and tracking tools, and digitally-enabled coordination of care. These tools may function as alternatives or adjuncts to face-to-face models of care. Innovative solutions in the form of digital mental health (dMH) services not only provide support, resources and care, but also decrease wait times and waitlists, increase access, and empower youth.

Identifying 'Where' and 'How' Peer Support for Youth is Integrated into Community-Based Mental Health Services: A Survey Study.

To mitigate barriers to care among youth (12-25 years), community-based organizations have increasingly integrated peer support as a complement to clinical mental health care; however, information regarding the integration process is lacking. To explore organizational perspectives regarding the contexts and mechanisms underlying integration of peer support for youth accessing mental health services from community-based, youth-serving organizations. Representatives from community-based youth-serving organizations completed a survey describing the contexts in which they are located and their experiences integrating peer support.

Ecological Momentary Assessment for Adolescents With Anorexia Nervosa and Their Parents/Caregivers in Family-Based Treatment.

Introduction: Studies have shown that early weight gain in family-based treatment (FBT) predicts treatment response in adolescents with anorexia nervosa (AN); however, research examining factors associated with early weight gain in FBT is limited. This study tested the feasibility and acceptability of ecological momentary assessment (EMA) in early FBT, particularly to capture momentary data on family climate during mealtimes.

Methods: Using multiple methods, quantitative (EMA) and qualitative (interviews) data were collected in the first 4 weeks of FBT.

What skills do adolescents and young adults desire as they prepare for adult health care?

Background: The transition from pediatric to adult care is a period associated with adverse health outcomes (e.g., health care dropout, health deterioration and poor adherence to management) for adolescents and young adults (AYA) with chronic conditions and their caregivers.

Amplifying adolescent and emerging adult voices: Development of a pediatric-to-adult transition research advisory council.

Background: Adolescents and emerging adults (AEA) with chronic health conditions may face numerous challenges when undergoing the transition from pediatric to adult health care. Despite the need for engagement with AEA in health research, little is known about how researchers operationalize this engagement. In an effort to enhance transparency in the practices of patient engagement, this commentary details the process of developing a pediatric-adult transition-specific youth advisory council in Alberta: the Transition Research Advisory Council (TRAC).

Transition experiences of adolescents and young adults working with a patient navigator.

Introduction: The transition from pediatric to adult care poses challenges for adolescents and young adults (AYA) with chronic conditions and their caregivers. A patient navigator (PN) intervention may mitigate transition-related barriers.

Methods: A qualitative study was conducted within a pragmatic randomized controlled trial.

"FBT Is for the Rich": A Qualitative Study Examining Clinicians' Experiences and Perceptions of Treatment Access and Engagement for Diverse Families in Family-Based Treatment.

Objective: Family-based treatment (FBT) is the leading evidence-based treatment for adolescent eating disorders, but research exploring access and engagement in FBT is sparse. This paper focuses on findings from a broader study, specifically addressing the social determinants of health (SDH) impeding access and engagement in FBT for diverse families (i.e.