Bridging the Gap - Tools for Finding Health, Mental Health and Wellness Resources for University and College Students

Summary

Background: Seventy percent of lifetime cases of mental illness emerge prior to age 24. While early detection and intervention can address approximately 70% of child and youth cases of mental health concerns, the majority of youth with mental health concerns do not receive the services they need.

Objective: This project will evaluate the impact of Thought Spot upon intentions and self-efficacy in help-seeking for mental health concerns among transition aged youth (youth aged 17-29) enrolled full-time or part-time at a college or university in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), compared with a control group (who receive usual care; resource pamphlet).

Methods: A two-group partially blinded pre-post randomized controlled study will be done to evaluate the impact of the digital platform, Thought Spot, on transition-aged youths' intentions to help-seek. Measurements will be taken over a 6 month period: baseline, 3 months, and 6 months. 472 participants who are enrolled part-time or full-time at one of 3 participating post-secondary institutions (George Brown College, Ryerson University, University of Toronto) who are interested in maintaining or managing their mental health will be recruited and randomized to the intervention arm or the control arm. The intervention group participants will have access to the Thought Spot platform. The control group participants will receive a pamphlet that outlines mental health services and wellness services across the GTA. Both groups will also have access to usual care.

Results: The investigators are testing the hypothesis that 1) transition-aged youth who receive the intervention will show a greater improvement in intentions and self-efficacy in help-seeking for mental health concerns than those who are allocated to the control group; and 2) participants in the intervention arm will also show greater improvements in health literacy, including awareness of available services and supports, increased self-efficacy in managing their mental health concerns, and a reduction in mental health stigma, compared to the control arm.

Conditions

• Adolescent
• Mental Health Wellness 1
• Self Efficacy
• Stigma, Social

Interventions

OTHER

Thought Spot

Thought Spot is a mobile app and website. This digital platform was designed and produced in partnership with transition aged youth in post-secondary education. The platform maps out wellness and mental health services across the Greater Toronto Area.

OTHER

Resource Pamphlet

The resource pamphlet that participants will be given will include information on the mental health and wellness services available at their respective post-secondary institution.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• David Wiljer, PhD · Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

17 Years

Max Age

29 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2018-03-13

Primary Completion

2019-06-30

Completion

2019-06-30

Countries

• Canada

Study Locations