Case Study: Evaluation of the National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program and Longitudinal Research Plan
Client: Australian Department of Health
Lead: Professor Simon Smith
Term: 2018 - 2021
An ISSR team of mixed-method researchers, led by Professor Simon Smith, is undertaking the overarching evaluation of the National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program. The program is an initiative designed to build the capability of, and coordination between, national providers (including Beyond Blue and Emerging Minds) to support positive mental health in young Australians.
In collaboration with the Telethon Kids Institute, ISSR is assessing the role of educators, health workers, and others working with children in supporting child and youth mental health; how they can be best assisted; and how these benefits might be tracked over time.
A life course approach informs the evaluation, which can be used to benchmark the impact of mental health support on the wellbeing and mental health risk profile of children and young people. It will also inform the development of a future longitudinal research plan which aims to develop a viable framework for conducting national research that will provide an evidence base to inform ongoing government investment in promotion, prevention, early intervention and postvention mental health measures for children and young people.