Developing best practices for culturally appropriate programming to promote mental health equity among BIPOC youth

Mental health is a growing concern for Canadian youth, with higher rates of mental health concerns in youth who are BIPOC. As a result, many mental health programs are established to detect and treat concerns in youth, with the goal of reducing mental health burden in adulthood. However, BIPOC youth face many systemic barriers to accessing mental health resources, therefore highlighting the need for mental health programs to acknowledge the unique needs of BIPOC youth. The proposed research project aims to develop best practice guidelines for delivering culturally appropriate mental health programming for BIPOC youth. To accomplish this objective, best practice guidelines will be supported through a literature review, an environmental scan to identify BIPOC-focused mental health organizations, and knowledge gathered from focus groups and sharing circles with BIPOC youth. Outcomes from this project will support Jack.org’s programming for increasing access to equitable and inclusive mental health resourcing across Canada.

Faculty Supervisor:

Eva Pila

Student:

Partner:

Mental Health Research Canada;Jack.org

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Other services (except public administration); Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

The University of Western Ontario

Program: