What do the PHQ-9, the GAD-7 and their variants miss in assessing young people presenting to youth mental health services?

Brief self-report measures offer significant benefits in youth mental health services by providing quick, efficient, and accessible assessment of mental health status. In this study, we describe the psychometric features of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), the Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and their shorter variants in 1063 young people at their first appointment to headspace youth primary care mental health services. Specific aims were to: (i) document the internal consistency, dimensionality, and measurement invariance for sex and age (12-14, 15-17, 18-21, 22-25 years) for the PHQ-9 and GAD-7; (ii) compare the full and shorter variants of the measures; and (iii) determine construct validity by correlating variants with measures of psychological distress, rumination, functioning, and quality of life.

Bipolar Early Intervention Using New Digital Technologies (BLEND): A Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial of a Novel Blended-Digital Early Intervention Model of Care for Youth With Bipolar Disorder I or II.

Background: Despite evidence for early interventions for bipolar disorder (BD), there are relatively few accessible treatment models. We developed a digitally augmented model of care termed BLEND (BipoLar early interventions using New Digital technologies) which aims to improve mood symptoms in BD. BLEND includes: (a) guideline-concordant pharmacotherapy; (b) in-person psychological therapies blended with digital therapeutic content and (c) digital relapse monitoring.

Baseline correlates of functional impairment at 12 months in young people with borderline personality disorder: findings from the MOBY trial.

No studies have investigated baseline predictors of functioning among young people receiving treatment for BPD. The current study aimed to identify the baseline demographic, psychopathological and treatment correlates of interpersonal problems and social adjustment at 12-month follow-up among young people with BPD, who received early intervention in the Monitoring Outcomes of BPD in Youth (MOBY) randomised controlled trial. Of 139 randomised young people (aged 15 to 25 years) who completed interview and self-report measures at baseline (pre-treatment), 98 (M = 18.

Using data linkage for mental health research in Australia.

Data linkage is a powerful tool for understanding the multifaceted needs and priorities of mental health care from the perspective of users and providers. Its potential remains underutilised in Australian settings - the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Mental Health in 2020 highlighted a significant gap: routinely collected administrative data are seldom leveraged in mental health research and service evaluation. In this manuscript, we provide insights into how data linkage has been used in mental health research, the type of questions that can be addressed, the steps involved in conducting data linkage research and the benefits and limitations of the use of this methodology.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Risk Factors of Violence During First-Episode Psychosis.

Most people with a psychotic illness will never be violent; however, it is widely known that violence is more prevalent in this group compared to the general community, particularly during first-episode psychosis (FEP). Despite this, there is limited research into what contributes to this increased risk during FEP. The present systematic review aimed to identify whether certain risk factors are differentially associated with severity and timing of violence perpetration during FEP.

Exploring the associations between the presence, characteristics, and biopsychosocial covariates of pain and lifetime depression in adolescents: A cross-sectional ABCD study analysis.

Introduction: Depression and pain co-occur, even during adolescence. However, there is limited knowledge on the association between pain and lifetime depression, and which biopsychosocial measures are associated with this co-occurrence.

Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) two-year follow-up.

Early Maladaptive Schemas and Depression in Caregivers of Individuals With Schizophrenia Spectrum and Bipolar Disorders.

Objectives: Early maladaptive schemas represent unhelpful frameworks of cognitions, emotions and subsequent behavioural responses and can be associated with depressive symptoms. Caregivers of individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) frequently report experiencing depressive symptoms. It is unclear whether depressive symptoms in caregivers are influenced by schemas.

A Prototype Software Framework for Transferable Computational Health Economic Models and Its Early Application in Youth Mental Health.

We are developing an economic model to explore multiple topics in Australian youth mental health policy. To help make that model more readily transferable to other jurisdictions, we developed a software framework for authoring modular computational health economic models (CHEMs) (the software files that implement health economic models). We specified framework user requirements for: a simple programming syntax; a template CHEM module; tools for authoring new CHEM modules; search tools for finding existing CHEM modules; tools for supplying CHEM modules with data; reproducible analysis and reporting tools; and tools to help maintain a CHEM project website.

Guidance on Minimum Standards for Canine-Assisted Psychotherapy in Adolescent Mental Health: Delphi Expert Consensus on Health, Safety, and Canine Welfare.

As interest in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and canine-assisted psychotherapy (CAP) grows, there are increasing calls for the management of related health, safety, and welfare concerns for canines, providers, and clients. Existing health and safety guidelines lack empirical support and are, at times, contradictory. Welfare is increasingly prioritized; however, tools to monitor and manage welfare are underutilized and under-reported.

Systematic Review and Meta-analysis: Rates of Violence During First-Episode Psychosis (FEP).

Background: Most people with psychotic disorders will never commit an act of violence. However, the risk of violence committed by people with schizophrenia is higher than the general population. Violence risk is also known to be highest during the first episode of psychosis compared to later stages of illness.

The Influence of Personality Disorder Symptoms on Treatment Outcomes in Bipolar Disorder: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomised Controlled Trial: L'influence des symptômes du trouble de la personnalité sur les résultats du traitement dans le trouble bipolaire : Une analyse secondaire d'un essai randomisé contrôlé.

Objectives: Many people who are diagnosed with bipolar disorder also have comorbid personality disorder. Few studies have explored how personality disorder may influence pharmacological treatment outcomes. The aim of this study was to conduct a secondary analysis of data from a clinical trial of adjunctive nutraceutical treatments for bipolar depression, to determine whether maladaptive personality traits influence treatment outcomes.

The Study of Ketamine for Youth Depression (SKY-D): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of low-dose ketamine for young people with major depressive disorder.

Background: Existing treatments for young people with severe depression have limited effectiveness. The aim of the Study of Ketamine for Youth Depression (SKY-D) trial is to determine whether a 4-week course of low-dose subcutaneous ketamine is an effective adjunct to treatment-as-usual in young people with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Methods: SKY-D is a double-masked, randomised controlled trial funded by the Australian Government's National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).

A randomised controlled trial of a psychoeducational group intervention for family and friends of young people with borderline personality disorder features.

Objective: Preliminary evidence indicates that interventions designed to support family and friends ('carers') of young people with early-stage borderline personality disorder effectively improve carer outcomes. None of these interventions have been tested in a randomised controlled trial.

Method: This clustered, partially nested, randomised controlled trial was conducted at Orygen, Melbourne, Australia.

The Impact of -acetylcysteine on Major Depression: Qualitative Observation and Mixed Methods Analysis of Participant Change during a 12-week Randomised Controlled Trial.

Objective: -acetylcysteine (NAC) is a novel therapeutic agent with multiple mechanisms of action in the central nervous system and a favourable side effect profile. Clinical evidence indicates that adjunctive NAC may reduce the severity of depressive symptoms in individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Methods: A 12-week randomised controlled trial of 2,000 mg/day adjunctive NAC for MDD found no significant improvement at the primary endpoint (week 12) but did see improvements at the post-discontinuation interview (week 16).

Emotion dysregulation in young people with borderline personality disorder: One pattern or distinct subgroups?

Emotion dysregulation is a key feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Given the heterogeneity of BPD and emotion regulation, this study sought to define subgroups among a sample of young people with BPD based on their pattern of emotion regulation abilities. Baseline data from the Monitoring Outcomes of BPD in Youth (MOBY) clinical trial were used, in which 137 young people ( = 19.

Childhood trauma relates to worse memory functioning in bipolar disorder.

Background: Childhood trauma is commonly experienced by individuals diagnosed with bipolar disorder (BP). In BP, childhood trauma is related to a more severe clinical course, but its association with cognition remains unclear.

Methods: This study evaluated 405 adult participants diagnosed with BP and 136 controls.

Interpersonal Trauma and Depression Severity Among Individuals With Bipolar Disorder: Findings From the Prechter Longitudinal Study of Bipolar Disorder.

Experiences of interpersonal trauma, both in childhood and in adulthood, can affect the trajectory of bipolar disorder (BD). However, the degree to which childhood and/or adult trauma impacts the longitudinal trajectory of depression severity among individuals with BD actively receiving treatment remains unclear. The effects of childhood trauma (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire) and adult trauma (Life Events Checklist) on depression severity (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale) were investigated in a treatment-receiving subsample with BD () of the Prechter Longitudinal Study of Bipolar Disorder (2005-present).

Accelerating youth mental health services research.

Objective: We describe a research program to advance youth mental health service research in Australia, addressing two core knowledge gaps: the lack of available routine outcome measures and lack of understanding of how to assess and monitor complexity and heterogeneity in illness presentation and trajectory.

Conclusions: Our research identifies better routine outcome measures (ROM) that are: designed specifically for the developmental nuances of the 12-25-year age range; multidimensional; and meaningful to young people, their carers, and service providers. Alongside much-needed new measures of complexity and heterogeneity, these tools will inform service providers to better meet the needs of young people presenting with mental health problems.

A randomized controlled trial of moderated online social therapy for family carers of first-episode psychosis patients in a specialist treatment setting.

Background: Family members, who provide the majority of informal care during the recovery period from first-episode psychosis (FEP), experience high levels of psychological distress. However, there is a lack of effective and accessible interventions for FEP carers.

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of an online intervention ("Altitudes") in relation to the primary outcome of FEP-carer stress at 6 months follow-up.

Understanding the complexity, patterns, and correlates of alcohol and other substance use among young people seeking help for mental ill-health.

Purpose: Use of alcohol and other substances is a multifaceted issue impacting young people across multiple life domains. This paper aims to elucidate patterns of substance use and associated demographic and clinical factors among young people seeking treatment for their mental health.

Methods: Young people (12-25 years old) were recruited from five youth-specific primary mental health ("headspace") services in Australia.