Grant: Operation:eHealth Innov Partnership Program(eHIPP)-Youth &Adolescent Mental Hlth

WeTakeCare is a patient-centered internet and mobile-based interactive communication system (ICS) that continuously exchanges information between the parents and all stakeholders involved in the youth and adolescent's life in order to build a shared vision and assist collaborative care. Although it can be used for various mental health problems, it has been first tailored to address the needs of youths with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For example, a questionnaire allows monitoring ADHD symptoms and side effects. Physicians may use a module that provides a graphic output with percentile curves for blood pressure, heart rate, height and weight. A Daily Report Card supports implementing of a Behavior Management plan via a continuous exchange of information between home and school. Standardized information is entered by the users according to a schedule linked with specific objectives, from once every two or three month for follow-up, up to every day in a four-week stimulant titration trial. The outputs (graphs, reports) are tailored specifically for each user and linked to decision support tools. The Family First Health Center (FFHC) in Orleans (Ontario) and the ADHD and disruptive disorder clinic at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario have partnered to develop an ADHD program to respond to the needs of these families. We will test the benefit of using WeTakeCare to support the participation of families in this ADHD program on a series of primary outcomes: ADHD symptoms, oppositional/aggressive symptoms, social skills, internalizing symptoms, parent-child relations, academic achievement, engagement and autonomy, and compliance to treatment over four years during the transition from late adolescence to adulthood. This project has the potential to make a dramatic difference in the outcome of one of the most common and most invalidating mental health condition in children and youths, in real-life community based primary health care settings.