OBJECTIVE: Few individuals with eating disorders (EDs) receive treatment. Innovations are needed to identify individuals with EDs and address care barriers. We developed a chatbot for promoting services uptake that could be paired with online screening. However, it is not yet known which components drive effects. This study estimated individual and combined contributions of four chatbot components on mental health services use (primary), chatbot helpfulness, and attitudes toward changing eating/shape/weight concerns (\"change attitudes,\" with higher scores indicating greater importance/readiness).
METHODS: Two hundred five individuals screening with an ED but not in treatment were randomized in an optimization randomized controlled trial to receive up to four chatbot components: psychoeducation, motivational interviewing, personalized service recommendations, and repeated administration (follow-up check-ins/reminders). Assessments were at baseline and 2, 6, and 14 weeks.
RESULTS: Participants who received repeated administration were more likely to report mental health services use, with no significant effects of other components on services use. Repeated administration slowed the decline in change attitudes participants experienced over time. Participants who received motivational interviewing found the chatbot more helpful, but this component was also associated with larger declines in change attitudes. Participants who received personalized recommendations found the chatbot more helpful, and receiving this component on its own was associated with the most favorable change attitude time trend. Psychoeducation showed no effects.
CONCLUSIONS: Results indicated important effects of components on outcomes; findings will be used to finalize decision making about the optimized intervention package. The chatbot shows high potential for addressing the treatment gap for EDs.

Despite the existence of significant research on the mental health care challenges of migrants, particularly refugees and asylum seekers, less attention has been paid to treatment approaches. We used a case study from the UK to look at the topic from a cultural models approach (which comes from cognitive anthropology) to analyse migrants\' experiences with mental health care. Twenty-five refugees and asylum seekers living in North East England and Northern Ireland were interviewed who had used at least six sessions of talking therapy during the last three years. Our results suggested that adopting a \'cultural models\' approach, which offers a new conceptual and methodological framework of migrants\' experiences and their underlying schemas and expectations, would significantly contribute to building therapeutic alliances and provide relevant and appropriate treatments for migrant clients, particularly for unrecognised pre- and post-migration traumatic experiences.

OBJECTIVE: We developed a chatbot aimed to facilitate mental health services use for eating disorders (EDs) and offered the opportunity to enrol in a research study and use the chatbot to all adult respondents to a publicly available online ED screen who screened positive for clinical/subclinical EDs and reported not currently being in treatment. We examined the rates and correlates of enrolment in the study and uptake of the chatbot.
METHODS: Following screening, eligible respondents (≥18 years, screened positive for a clinical/subclinical ED, not in treatment for an ED) were shown the study opportunity. Chi-square tests and logistic regressions explored differences in demographics, ED symptoms, suicidality, weight, and probable ED diagnoses between those who enroled and engaged with the chatbot versus those who did not.
RESULTS: 6747 respondents were shown the opportunity (80.0% of all adult screens). 3.0% enroled, of whom 90.2% subsequently used the chatbot. Enrolment and chatbot uptake were more common among respondents aged ≥25 years old versus those aged 18-24 and less common among respondents who reported engaging in regular dietary restriction.
CONCLUSIONS: Overall enrolment was low, yet uptake was high among those that enroled and did not differ across most demographics and symptom presentations. Future directions include evaluating respondents\' attitudes towards treatment-promoting tools and removing barriers to uptake.

A mounting body of evidence reveals that college mental health outcomes are worsening over time. That said, little is known about the mental health needs of the nearly eight million first-generation students in U.S. postsecondary education. The present study uses population-level data from the national Healthy Minds Study to compare prevalence of mental health symptoms and use of services for first-generation and continuing-generation students from 2018-2021. The sample includes 192,202 students at 277 campuses, with 17.3% being first-generation. Findings reveal a high prevalence of mental health symptoms among both first-generation and continuing-generation students. Controlling for symptoms, FG students had significantly lower rates of mental health service use. Just 32.8% of first-generation students with symptoms received therapy in the past year, relative to 42.8% among continuing-generation students, and this disparity widened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings have important implications for the design and implementation of higher education policies, mental health delivery systems, college persistence and retention initiatives, and public health efforts in school settings.

Post-secondary students frequently experience high rates of mental health challenges. However, they present meagre rates of treatment-seeking behaviours. This elevated prevalence of mental health problems, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic, can lead to distress, poor academic performance, and lower job prospects following the completion of education. To address the needs of this population, it is important to understand students\' perceptions of mental health and the barriers preventing or limiting their access to care.
A broad-scoping online survey was publicly distributed to post-secondary students, collecting demographic, sociocultural, economic, and educational information while assessing various components of mental health.
In total, 448 students across post-secondary institutions in Ontario, Canada, responded to the survey. Over a third (n = 170; 38.6%) of respondents reported a formal mental health diagnosis. Depression and generalized anxiety disorder were the most commonly reported diagnoses. Most respondents felt that post-secondary students did not have good mental health (n = 253; 60.5%) and had inadequate coping strategies (n = 261; 62.4%). The most frequently reported barriers to care were financial (n = 214; 50.5%), long wait times (n = 202; 47.6%), insufficient resources (n = 165; 38.9%), time constraints (n = 148; 34.9%), stigma (n = 133; 31.4%), cultural barriers (n = 108; 25.5%), and past negative experiences with mental health care (n = 86; 20.3%). The majority of students felt their post-secondary institution needed to increase awareness (n = 231; 56.5%) and mental health resources (n = 306; 73.2%). Most viewed in-person therapy and online care with a therapist as more helpful than self-guided online care. However, there was uncertainty about the helpfulness and accessibility of different forms of treatment, including online interventions. The qualitative findings highlighted the need for personal strategies, mental health education and awareness, and institutional support and services.
Various barriers to care, perceived lack of resources, and low knowledge of available interventions may contribute to compromised mental health in post-secondary students. The survey findings indicate that upstream approaches such as integrating mental health education for students may address the varying needs of this critical population. Therapist-involved online mental health interventions may be a promising solution to address accessibility issues.

Contemporary immigration scholarship has typically treated immigrants with diverse racial backgrounds as a monolithic population. Knowledge gaps remain in understanding how racial and nativity inequities in mental health care intersect and unfold in midlife and old age. This study aims to examine the joint impact of race, migration, and old age in shaping mental health treatment.
Pooled data were obtained from the Canadian Community Health Survey (2015-2018) and restricted to respondents (aged ≥45 years) with mood or anxiety disorders (n = 9,099). Multivariable logistic regression was performed to estimate associations between race-migration nexus and past-year mental health consultations (MHC). Classification and regression tree (CART) analysis was applied to identify intersecting determinants of MHC.
Compared to Canadian-born Whites, racialized immigrants had greater mental health needs: poor/fair self-rated mental health (odds ratio [OR] = 2.23, 99% confidence interval [CI]: 1.67-2.99), perceived life stressful (OR = 1.49, 99% CI: 1.14-1.95), psychiatric comorbidity (OR = 1.42, 99% CI: 1.06-1.89), and unmet needs for care (OR = 2.02, 99% CI: 1.36-3.02); in sharp contrast, they were less likely to access mental health services across most indicators: overall past-year MHC (OR = 0.54, 99% CI: 0.41-0.71) and consultations with family doctors (OR = 0.67, 99% CI: 0.50-0.89), psychologists (OR = 0.54, 99% CI: 0.33-0.87), and social workers (OR = 0.37, 99% CI: 0.21-0.65), with the exception of psychiatrist visits (p = .324). The CART algorithm identifies three groups at risk of MHC service underuse: racialized immigrants aged ≥55 years, immigrants without high school diplomas, and linguistic minorities who were home renters.
To safeguard health care equity for medically underserved communities in Canada, multisectoral efforts need to guarantee culturally responsive mental health care, multilingual services, and affordable housing for racialized immigrant older adults with mental disorders.

BACKGROUND: Mobile health (mHealth) technologies have been used extensively in psychosis research. In contrast, their integration into real-world clinical care has been limited despite the broad availability of smartphone-based apps targeting mental health care. Most apps developed for treatment of individuals with psychosis have focused primarily on encouraging self-management skills of patients via practicing cognitive behavioral techniques learned during face-to-face clinical sessions (eg, challenging dysfunctional thoughts and relaxation exercises), reminders to engage in health-promoting activities (eg, exercising, sleeping, and socializing), or symptom monitoring. In contrast, few apps have sought to enhance the clinical encounter itself to improve shared decision-making (SDM) and therapeutic relationships with clinicians, which have been linked to positive clinical outcomes.
OBJECTIVE: This qualitative study sought clinicians\' input to develop First Episode Digital Monitoring (FREEDoM), an app-based mHealth intervention. FREEDoM was designed to improve the quality, quantity, and timeliness of clinical and functional data available to clinicians treating patients experiencing first-episode psychosis (FEP) to enhance their therapeutic relationship and increase SDM.
METHODS: Following the app\'s initial development, semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted with 11 FEP treatment providers at 3 coordinated specialty care clinics to elicit input on the app\'s design, the data report for clinicians, and planned usage procedures. We then generated a summary template and conducted matrix analysis to systematically categorize suggested adaptations to the evidence-based intervention using dimensions of the Framework for Reporting Adaptations and Modifications-Enhanced (FRAME) and documented the rationale for adopting or rejecting suggestions.
RESULTS: The clinicians provided 31 suggestions (18 adopted and 13 rejected). Suggestions to add or refine the content were most common (eg, adding questions in the app). Adaptations to context were most often related to plans for implementing the intervention, how the reported data were displayed to clinicians, and with whom the reports were shared. Reasons for suggestions primarily included factors related to health narratives and priorities of the patients (eg, focus on the functional impact of symptoms vs their severity), providers\' clinical judgment (eg, need for clinically relevant information), and organizations\' mission and culture. Reasons for rejecting suggestions included requests for data and procedures beyond the intervention\'s scope, concerns regarding dilution of the intervention\'s core components, and concerns about increasing patient burden while using the app.
CONCLUSIONS: FREEDoM focuses on a novel target for the deployment of mHealth technologies in the treatment of FEP patients-the enhancement of SDM and improvement of therapeutic relationships. This study illustrates the use of the FRAME, along with methods and tools for rapid qualitative analysis, to systematically track adaptations to the app as part of its development process. Such adaptations may contribute to enhanced acceptance of the intervention by clinicians and a higher likelihood of integration into clinical care.
BACKGROUND: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04248517; https://tinyurl.com/tjuyxvv6.

BACKGROUND: Specialized mental health services for the treatment of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) are generally expensive and labour intensive. They require a trauma-informed approach that may involve multiple services and therapeutic modalities, provided over the course of several months. That said, given the broad-ranging, long term negative sequelae of CSA, an evaluation of the cost-benefit analysis of treatment is clearly justified.
METHODS: We performed a Social Return on Investment (SROI) analysis of data gathered as part of the treatment program at the Be Brave Ranch in Edmonton, Canada to determine the value-for-money of the services provided. We endeavoured to take a conservative, medium-term (5 year) perspective; this is in contrast to short term (1-2 year) effects, which may rapidly dissipate, or long term (15-20 year) effects, which are likely diffuse and difficult to measure. As such, our analysis was based on an average annual intake of 100 children/adolescents (60:40 split) and their families, followed over a five-year timeframe. Financial proxies were assigned to benefits not easily monetized, and six potential domains of cost savings were identified.
RESULTS: Our analyses suggest that each dollar spent in treatment results in an average cost savings of $11.60 (sensitivity analysis suggests range of 9.20-12.80). The largest value-for-money was identified as the domain of crisis prevention, via the avoidance of rare but costly events associated with the long term impacts of CSA. Somewhat surprisingly, savings related to the area of criminal justice were minimal, compared to other social domains analysed. Implications are discussed.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the cost effectiveness of the investment associated with specialized, evidence-based early interventions for CSA. These approaches alleviate severe, negative outcomes associated with CSA, resulting in both economic savings and social benefits. These findings rest upon a number of assumptions, and generalizability of these results is therefore limited to similar programs located in comparable areas. However, the SROI ratio achieved in this analysis, in excess of $11:1, supports the idea that, while costly, these services more than pay for themselves over time.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has required restrictive measures to mitigate transmission of the virus. Evidence has demonstrated increased generalized anxiety and depression among young adults due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, minimal research has examined the longitudinal effect of COVID-19 over the course of time and its impact on anxiety and depression. Additionally, age and gender have been found to play a significant role on individuals\' mental health, with young adults and women particularly at risk.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on anxiety and depression upon admissions to treatment.
METHODS: This was an observational study that was completed longitudinally in which the grouping variable split the time interval into five equal groups for assessments over each period of time. A total of 112 young adults (aged 18-25 years) were recruited for the study. Participants completed assessments online through a Qualtrics link.
RESULTS: Psychometric properties of the admission assessments were uniformly highly statistically significant. There was a significant difference in generalized anxiety between the group-1 and group-3 time intervals. No significant difference was found across the time intervals for depression. Differences in predicting the impact of the psychometrics scores were found with respect to gender. Only the ability to participate and the quality-of-life subfactor of the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy (FACIT) assessment were significant.
CONCLUSIONS: This study sought to understand the impact that COVID-19 has had on young adults seeking mental health services during the pandemic. Gender emerged as a clear significant factor contributing to increased anxiety in young adults seeking mental health services during the pandemic. These findings have critical importance to ensuring the potential treatment success rate of clients, while providing an overarching understanding of the impact of the pandemic and establishing clinical recommendations for the treatment of individuals who are seeking out treatment.

BACKGROUND: Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of online mental health treatments have grown exponentially. Additionally, it seems inevitable that this technical resource is here to stay at health centers. However, there is still very little scholarly literature published on this topic, and therefore, the impact of the changes that have had to be dealt with in this regard has not been studied.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the differences in the establishment of the therapeutic alliance (TA) based on the intervention modality (online or face-to-face), the type of attachment, and diagnosis.
METHODS: A total of 291 subjects participated in the study, 149 (51.2%) of whom were men and 142 were (48.8%) women between the ages of 18 and 30 years. The instruments used were sociodemographic data, SOFTA-o (System for Observing Family Therapeutic Alliances-observational), and Relationship Questionnaire.
RESULTS: The results show that the treatments conducted face-to-face obtain significantly better scores in the creation of the TA than those conducted online (t=-42.045, df=289, P<.001). The same holds true with attachment, in that users with secure attachment show a better TA than those with insecure attachment (t=6.068, P<.001,), although there were no significant differences with the diagnosis (F=4.566, P=.44), age (r=0.02, P=.70), and sex (t=0.217, P=.33).
CONCLUSIONS: We believe that professionals are not yet prepared to conduct remote treatment with a degree of efficacy similar to that of face-to-face. It is essential for professionals to receive training in this new technical resource and to understand and incorporate the variants it entails into their daily practice.