Grant: Other: IYS-Net Phase 2 - Provincial Stream Grants

Foundry is the integrated youth services (IYS) initiative in British Columbia (BC) that is using a learning health system approach. Learning health systems are a model for applying information from multiple sources, including patient outcomes and data, for continuous quality improvement. To make a learning health system at Foundry that works for everyone in BC, we must integrate new knowledge about what matters most to four key groups of knowledge users who use or deliver IYS: youth, families/caregivers, service providers, and decision makers/policymakers. We also must assess Foundry's impact and improve its data systems to better understand and implement knowledge user priorities. To achieve these goals, we will establish two Steering Committees (Indigenous, Non-Indigenous) with the four groups of knowledge users to guide all project activities and integrate their knowledge into results. We will divide activities into a core component and a data component. In the core component, we will review published literature to see what is used to capture outcomes and experiences in IYS. Next, we will interview representatives of the four knowledge user groups to understand the experiences and outcomes of IYS that are important to them. The knowledge from these activities will be used to support surveys, focus groups, and consultations to develop a new system of measurement for the Foundry learning health system. The system will be implemented, and we will study the success of this implementation. In the data component, we will bring together a group of people who have special data skills. This group will analyze existing Foundry data to better understand what impact Foundry has been having on youth and will then help to set up the data resources for the new system of measurement. Overall, this study will strengthen the capacity to assess and improve the quality, effectiveness, and impact of Foundry, with learnings that can be shared with IYS initiatives across Canada.