Grant: Operating Grant: SPOR iCT Rewarding Success - Travel Awards - Manitoba

Mental disorders are common in childhood. They are distressing, disabling and if left untreated, significantly impact quality of life into adulthood. First Nations (FN) youth in Canada are at particular risk. Although actual rates of mental disorders among FN youth are not known, research indicates that they are at higher risk for developing a mental illness and are 5 to 6 times more likely to die by suicide compared to non-FN youth. Despite this mental health crisis, there remains a lack of mental health services that are both readily available within FN communities and culturally appropriate. There is, therefore, an urgent need to develop and provide novel and cost-effective mental health services and supports for youth living in their own communities. Jordan's Principle-a child first approach used to resolve funding disputes between federal and provincial governments for healthcare to FN children-was developed as a means to eliminate barriers to healthcare services, including mental health provisions, for youth. The proposed project will implement and evaluate a wraparound model of mental health care for FN youth in Manitoba (MB) that is rooted in Jordan's Principle. The wraparound model of care takes an innovative approach, using both traditional clinical methods of service delivery (e.g., direct intervention and face-to-face interactions with clinicians) as well as novel strategies, (e.g., delivery of services using telehealth) to provide care for youth. The model includes: building community capacity and community supports; and educating community service providers to develop a sustainable and cost-effective mental health care system that is rooted in the community and responds to the needs of FN families. The model will be adapted to respect the uniqueness of each MB FN community in order to achieve successful implementation.