Funded Projects

Toppenish Youth Mind-Body Wellness Groups

Project Year

2022

City & State

Seattle, Washington

Program Name

CATCH Resident

Topic

Mental Health (LHI)

Program Description

Problem: An increasing number of adolescents have been experiencing mental health challenges, ranging from mild symptoms to acute crises, and this problem has been severely exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic (1,4). Teens in Yakima County specifically demonstrate high rates of mental health concerns with a lack of providers available to care for them (2,3). Since the pandemic’s onset, mental health providers in Toppenish, WA, have noticed more students presenting with difficulty coping with stress, problems sleeping, depression, anxiety, disrupted routines, and disordered eating. The current capacity of the mental health system in the area is inadequate to meet the needs of the population, with long wait lists for mental health providers and many teens developing acute crises before ever receiving services. Despite efforts to improve capacity, this lack of available care is likely to persist for the foreseeable future. Project goal: This project seeks to create a space for adolescents to learn and develop skills to promote their mental and physical well-being in a group environment through didactic and discussion-based sessions. These sessions will focus on reducing stigma, establishing healthy lifestyle routines, identifying coping strategies, and recognizing the close link between physical and mental health. By equipping youth with the knowledge and skills to cope better with the inevitable stressors in their lives, we hope to provide tools that will prevent worsening mental health, acute crises, and the need for escalated care, therefore reducing the impact of mental and behavioral health problems in the community. The sessions also seek to increase social connections and reduce pandemic-driven isolation among participating students. Proposed intervention: In coordination with Toppenish School District and the Yakima Valley Farmworkers Clinic, we propose the creation of wellness skill-building weekly group sessions within schools. We will develop a curriculum in collaboration with local mental health providers and high school officials. Possible proposed topics include healthy routines (sleep, exercise, self-care), healthy body image and nutrition, mood and coping with stress, teen relationships and communication, substance use, and gender identity and sexual orientation issues. An on-site Pediatrics Resident will facilitate sessions with a YVFC staff member on call for support needs remotely. Sessions will occur weekly for 60 minutes during or after school in a period and location designated by school staff. The primary setting of the initial pilot program will be Toppenish High School (THS), with possibility of expansion into Toppenish Middle School as well as other schools in the area. There are currently 950 THS students in grades 9-12 (5). Students will initially be recruited for participation from the 40 students who expressed interest in group support on the 2021 THS Health and Wellness Survey. Sessions will include didactic presentations, interactive group activities, and small group discussions related to the topic of the week. Students identified with needs for specific additional physical or mental healthcare services can self-refer or be referred to school-based counselors and behavioral health services through the YVFWC. Anticipated outcomes: We anticipate that, after completing four to six group sessions, participants will express increased knowledge of coping and wellness skills and feelings of self-efficacy regarding covered topics, as measured via pre and post surveys. The post-survey will include additional questions about perceived impact and attitudes towards the program. Outcomes will also be assessed via informal interviews with participants, school personnel, and mental health providers at YVFWC to fuel PDSA cycles for improvement in future cohorts.

Project Goal

To equip youth with the knowledge and skills to cope better with the stress in their lives and avert the need for some of them to require escalated care, therefore reducing the impact of mental and behavioral health problems in the Toppenish community.

Project Objective 1

By July 2022, we will have partnered with the community to outline and create a formalized curriculum for 4-6 weekly sessions related to topics chosen by stakeholders in Toppenish.

Project Objective 2

By October 2022, we will have completed our first cohort of sessions and collected survey responses from participants both before and after completing the curriculum.

Project Objective 3

Upon completion of the curriculum in May 2023, participants will demonstrate a better understanding of common mental health concerns, an improvement in their self-reported coping skills, increased use of strategies for optimizing routines for wellness, and overall improved self-reported wellness as demonstrated by survey responses before and after programming.

AAP District

District VIII

Institutional Name

University of Washington/ Seattle Children's Hospital

Contact 1

William Porter