Youth mental health outreach interventions: lessons from an experience capitalisation process

Abstract Issue Young people face socioeconomic, geographical and cultural barriers to access care and support in mental health. Practitioners implement outreach initiatives to improve mental health and address health inequalities, mostly developed in a ‘no-request for care’ context. Methods To better understand the implementation mechanisms of these initiatives, Fondation de France commissioned the French Society for Public Health to carry out an experience capitalisation to inspire other professionals. Experience capitalisation method was used, based on in depth interviews with project stakeholders. Covered themes were: the description of history, strategies and activities; identification of key moment and key levers; skills and knowledge used. Results Nine mental health outreach projects implemented across regions of France were selected with the help of a multidisciplinary steering committee. Each project was synthetised in a capitalisation document and a cross-sectional analysis was undertaken. Lessons • A variety of outreach approaches were carried on: meeting adolescents in the street or at coffee shops; home-based interventions; consultations in converted van etc. • Outreach is not just a matter of physically moving outside health structures but requires non-judging and flexible stance to adjust to the youth’s pace and will. To extend their approach to mobility, professionals deepen their team’s multidisciplinarity, broaden cross-sector partnerships and mobilise new skills and creativity. • Adolescents’ participation to care or support plans was one of projects strengths, whether they suffer from anxiety or mental disorders. However, their participation in governance and decisions regarding global projects remained limited. Key messages • To reduce mental health inequalities and enhance youth participation in outreach interventions, empowerment and wellbeing of interventions practitioners should also be supported. • Capitalisation of experience in health promotion is a promising method contributing to professional acknowledgment and development of shared knowledge on interventions implementation.