Study of Mental Health and Relationships
Investigating an Innovative Mentoring Model for Improving Effectiveness and Equity of Community-Based Support for Youth From Low-Resource Families With Mental Health Challenges
University of Illinois at Chicago
180 participants
Nov 6, 2023
INTERVENTIONAL
Conditions
Summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to test effects of the Great Life Mentoring (GLM) program on the mental health and adaptive functioning on school-age youth (ages 9-16) from low-income families who are receiving outpatient mental health services. The main questions it aims to answer are: • Does participation in the GLM program improve mental health and related outcomes among school-age youth (9- to 16-years-old) from low-income families as an adjunct to outpatient mental health services? 180 youth will be enrolled in the study and assigned randomly to either continue mental health services as usual (SAU) or to continue mental health services while also participating in GLM (SAU+GLM). Participating youth, and their parent/guardians and therapists, will be surveyed annually. Mental health services records also will be obtained with appropriate permissions. . Researchers will compare the SAU and SAU+GLM groups to see if participation in GLM has an effect on the mental health and related outcomes of study youth.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria2
- Youth is between 9- and 16-years-old
- Youth meets eligibility criteria for the Great Life Mentoring program, which include receiving publically-subsidized outpatient mental health care
Exclusion Criteria2
- Parental primary language other than English
- Youth difficulties in cognitive functioning that would preclude ability to complete study assessments
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Interventions
The Great Life Mentoring program (GLM) provides volunteer-based mentoring for school-age youth from low-resource families who are receiving outpatient mental health care. Each youth is paired with a mentor with whom they spend time in the community on a weekly basis for at least one year. Mentors are required to complete a 20-hour intensive training prior to being paired with a youth. Mentors also receive monthly in-person supervision from GLM staff for the first year of their meetings, which continues on an as-needed basis thereafter. Training and supervision are geared toward the unique opportunities and challenges that can occur when mentoring a youth with mental health needs. The goal is for the mentor to become an integral part of the child's mental health treatment, but the mentoring relationship is also sustained after treatment ends.
Locations(1)
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NCT06534827