The needs and service preferences of caregivers of youth with mental health and/or addictions concerns

Abstract

Background: Caregivers experience significant strains as a result of navigating the complex mental health and/or addiction (MHA) system for their youth with MHA issues. We examined the characteristics of Ontario families with youth with MHA issues and their service needs. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study investigated the characteristics and service needs of families with youth with MHA issues across the province of Ontario, Canada. A total of 840 caregivers were recruited. Results: 259 participants (Mage = 45.94, SD = 7.11) identified as caregiving for at least one youth with MHA issues. The majority of the participants were female (70.7%), married (73.4%), and completed at least some college/ Bachelor degree (59.1%). The mean age of youth was 16.72 years (SD = 5.33) and the most frequently reported diagnoses were Depression (30.1%), ADHD (27.8%) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (21.2%). Regression results demonstrated that presently accessing services, presently seeking services, and higher levels of barriers MHA services were significantly predictive of identifying navigation as helpful for finding appropriate MHA services (χ 2 (7) = 28.69, p < .001, Nagelkerke R 2 = .16). Furthermore, presently accessing services was significantly predictive of identifying case management as helpful (χ 2 (7) = 29.59, p < .001, Nagelkerke R 2 = .156), and of identifying a primary healthcare provider as helpful (χ 2 (7) = 38.75, p < .001, Nagelkerke R 2 = .197) for finding appropriate MHA services. Conclusion: Identifying the nature and extent of youth MHA issues, service needs, and family preferences can inform the development of services that address families' needs and lend vital support for accessing services within a complex system.

Youth mental health and/or addiction concerns and service needs during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative exploration of caregiver experiences and perspectives

“…Identifying caregiver perspectives of youth MHA needs and service access during the COVID-19 pandemic provided important insights that can help inform approaches to youth MHA care during the pandemic and beyond. Caregivers offer important insights into youth MHA needs [ 36 ], particularly during the pandemic [ 6 , 10 ]. Caregiver perspectives regarding youth MHA needs are also important to understand due to the relationship of youth MHA needs and family functioning with caregiver strain and because of the important role caregivers play in supporting youth access to care [ 34 , 37 ].…”

Cross-sectional survey of the Mental health and Addictions effects, Service impacts and Care needs of children, youth and families during the COVID-19 pandemic: the COVID-19 MASC study protocol

“…This checklist was adapted from one developed previously by research team members. 38 Respondents also indicated via yes/no response whether they were seeking new service/support. Satisfaction with services/ supports received was assessed with a seven-point Likert scale (1=extremely satisfied, 7=extremely dissatisfied).…”

“…These items were also adapted from measures developed previously by members of the research team. 38 Social support and positive perceptions scale Respondents' satisfaction with the availability of social supports (eg, friends, family, romantic partners, community groups, coworkers, pets) prior to and since the onset of the pandemic was evaluated via an original seven-point bipolar Likert scale (1=extremely satisfied, 4=neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, 7=extremely dissatisfied). An Open access original six-item questionnaire was used to assess changes in participants' experiences of feeling grateful, fortunate, healthy, physically strong, resilient and successful since the pandemic was declared.…”

“…These were adapted from prior work conducted by the research team members. 38 Preferences regarding helpfulness of various types of supports (eg, case manager, youth peer support worker, primary healthcare provider, navigator, multimedia resources, and informational and referral services) in finding the most appropriate MHA services for the child/ youth were assessed using a five-point Likert scale (1=very helpful, 5=very unhelpful).…”

Don’t Forget the Caregivers! A Discrete Choice Experiment Examining Caregiver Views of Integrated Youth Services

“…services that fit with the preferences of service users [ 31 ]. For youth services in particular, understanding preferences of both youth and caregivers is essential because of the key role that caregivers play in facilitating service utilization [ 32 – 34 ]. Ensuring that the services match the preferences of both youth and caregivers has been found to increase youth service acceptability and use [ 31 , 33 ].…”