(PS10-C53) Caregiver Experiences and the Impacts on Children’s Engagement with Mental Health Treatments in a Global Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to severe negative impacts on the mental health of youth ages 18 and under (Leeb et al. 2020). Research has shown that digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) are effective in managing mental health conditions among this population (Zhou et al. 2021). As online interventions for mental health treatment have grown in popularity, concerns and attitudes around who should be providing this mental health support have arisen. Though recent studies highlight the role of mentors in providing mental health support (McQuillin et al. 2021), caregiver’s attitudes surrounding their children's engagement with online interventions and paraprofessional administration of this support have yet to be addressed. It may be the case that caregivers’ attitudes toward interventions are influenced by their past experiences. Moreover, individuals may be reluctant to trust formal healthcare providers, owing to historical and ongoing racism within healthcare institutions (Kumlin et al., 2008). In this study, we examine if caregivers’ previous participation in mentoring programs relates to their current comfort with how their children receive mental health support. 

The objective of this study was to assess caregivers’ attitudes towards mental health interventions available to their children. Caregivers’ comfort with their child receiving therapy, comfort with their child’s mentor talking about mental health with their children, comfort with DMHIs, and comfort with mentors supporting DMHI use were examined. Participants (N= 4,853) were caregivers of children in mentoring programs, who completed an online survey assessing their attitudes regarding different mental health interventions for both themselves and their children. 72.3% (3,511) of the caregivers indicated that they had participated in youth mentoring programs themselves. Results of an independent samples t-test found that caregivers who had been involved in youth mentoring programs were more comfortable with mentors talking about mental health with their child (t(4713)=-6.57, p< .001), more comfortable with their children using DMHIs  (t(4714)=4.63, p< .001), and were more comfortable with their child engaging in therapy (t(4721)=-2.72, p< .05) compared to those who did not participate in a mentoring program previously. Results will be discussed in light of the changing mental health treatment landscape owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. Results will additionally be examined by racial and ethnic identity.