Category: Dissemination & Implementation Science
Rafaella Sale, Ph.D.
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, Virginia
Gwendolyn Lawson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Courtney Wolk, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rafaella Sale, Ph.D.
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, Virginia
Allison Smith, Ph.D.
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Little Rock, Arkansas
Ellie Wu, M.A.
University of South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Gwendolyn Lawson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Amanda Sanchez, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
George Mason University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Although evidence-based treatments (EBTs) exist for youth mental health concerns, most youth in need do not receive them, and those who do often dropout of treatment prematurely (Costello et al., 2014; De Haan et al., 2013; McClintock et al., 2017). This may be, in part, because existing evidence-based treatments and typical implementation approaches do not fully meet the needs and preferences of youth and families in the settings where they receive care (e.g., community clinics, schools; Durlak & Dupre, 2008). Meaningfully engaging stakeholders (including youth and families, clinicians in community settings, and policy makers and leaders) throughout all stages of research and implementation can help improve the quality and fit of interventions and implementation strategies (Concannon et al., 2014; Israel et al., 2001). This is more important than ever in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has heightened the need for effective and appropriate mental health services for youth and families. However, little work to date within psychological science describes processes for partnering with stakeholders and incorporating stakeholder input to improve the implementation of evidence-based treatments in usual care settings.
This symposium features five studies with differing methodologies that highlight ways of utilizing stakeholder engagement to improve the quality and appropriateness of youth mental health services. The studies feature diversity with regards to client population, target outcomes, treatment approach, and community setting. Together, they will describe approaches for using stakeholder-partnered research to enhance the availability of effective and contextually appropriate mental health services for youth and their families.
The studies in this symposium use iterative approaches and mixed methods to better understand the context of mental health service provision and develop interventions or implementation strategies in partnership with stakeholders. First, [XX] will describe results of a stakeholder-engaged needs assessment, including surveys, interviews and listening forums, in preparation for a statewide EBT roll-out. Second, [XX] will share mixed-methods results from clinicians who provide trauma treatment for youth in foster care regarding the barriers and facilitators to service provision in this setting. Next, [XX] will examine factors that relate to therapists’ existing use of engagement practices with youth and families in the context of system wide EBT implementation. Then, [XX] will describe and share data about the iterative development of strategies to support evidence-based behavioral intervention for ADHD in classroom settings, informed by input from teachers and other stakeholders. Finally, [XX] will report about the collaborative development of a clinician-facing toolkit, incorporating perspectives from qualitative interviews with children, families and clinician, to improve the cultural responsiveness of evidence-based intervention for youth with anxiety and OCD. [XX], an expert on using family participation to improve mental health services and research, will discuss themes from the presentations and provide suggestions for future research.
Presenter: Rafaella Sale, Ph.D. – Virginia Commonwealth University
Co-author: Gabriela Aisenberg, PhD – Virginia Commonwealth University
Co-author: Natalie Finn, M.S. – Virginia Commonwealth University
Co-author: Michael A. Southam-Gerow, Ph.D. – Virginia Commonwealth University
Presenter: Allison B. Smith, Ph.D. – University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Co-author: Harlee Onovbiona, BS – University of Arkansas Psychology Department
Co-author: Tim Cavell, Ph.D. – University of Arkansas
Presenter: Ellie Wu, M.A. – University of South Carolina
Co-author: Kimberly Becker, Ph.D. – University of South Carolina
Co-author: Jennifer Gamarra, Ph.D. – University of California, Los Angeles
Co-author: Rachel Kim, PhD – Judge Baker Children's Center
Co-author: Jonathan Martinez, Ph.D. – California State University, Northridge
Co-author: Bruce F. Chorpita, Ph.D. – University of California Los Angeles
Presenter: Gwendolyn Lawson, Ph.D. – The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Co-author: Gwendolyn Lawson, Ph.D. – The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Co-author: Samantha Tavlin, MA – Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Co-author: Julie S. Owens, Ph.D. – Ohio University
Co-author: David Mandell, Other – Center for Mental Health
Co-author: Aaron Lyon, PhD – University of Washington
Co-author: Aubrey Depa, BA – School District of Philadelphia
Co-author: Steven Rufe, M.Ed. – School District of Philadelphia
Co-author: Thomas J. Power, ABPP, Ph.D. – Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Perelman School of Medicine at University of Pennsylvania
Presenter: Amanda Sanchez, Ph.D. – George Mason University
Co-author: Michal Weiss, B.S. – Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Co-author: Temma L. Schaechter, PhD – University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Co-author: Ana Baumann, PhD – Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery Washington University School of Medicine
Co-author: Amber Calloway, Ph.D. – The Penn Collaborative for CBT and Implementation Science, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Co-author: Darlene M. Davis Goodwine, PhD, LP – Aidan Behavioral Health & Consulting
Co-author: Vanesa Mora Ringle, Ph.D. – The Penn Collaborative for CBT and Implementation Sclence, University of Pennsylvania
Co-author: Emily M. Becker-Haimes, Ph.D. – University of Pennsylvania