Grant: CIHR New Investigator

The majority of Canadian youth experiencing mental health problems do not have access to the mental health services they need. They navigate a tortuous pathway to mental health care with long delays to assessment and treatment, high rates of service disengagement, and ultimately poor outcomes. Barriers to care include stigma, geography, competing time demands (e.g., school), limited availability and skills of human resources, limited choices in modalities for receiving care, and disconnected services (in-person and online). eMental Health, the use of online technologies to deliver or enhance mental health care, has been identified as a promising avenue to address some of the barriers that young people face in accessing services. Yet, despite its potential, the integration of online technologies in the Canadian youth mental health care system is in the infancy stages of research, policy, and practice. My research program will generate evidence and provide critical insights on how technological innovations can be leveraged and integrated into the mental health care system to improve outcomes for youth. The program will address research gaps in the field, and through training and knowledge translation initiatives, it will also build capacity for research and practice in eMental Health for youth. Research activities will take place at the Youth eMental Health Research and Innovation Hub, a cutting-edge, state-of-the-art living lab, under my scientific direction, centrally located at the University of Montreal's new Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM) in downtown Montreal's 'Quartier Santé.'