Evaluation of the mental health transition navigation model in child and adolescent mental health settings: findings from a pre-post, mixed-methods study

Most youth do not experience a coordinated and planned transition out of child and youth mental health services, which often results in discontinuity in mental health care. This gap in care has led to the development and uptake of novel interventions, such as the transition navigation model, to facilitate mental health care transitions. The transition navigation model is a research-informed intervention that aims to assess and improve youth's transition readiness, identify their transition needs and goals, and support the transfer of care to adult or community mental health services. To evaluate the ongoing implementation of this model, we conducted a pre-post mixed-methods study involving youth participants accessing transition navigation services at two hospitals. Participants (n = 43) completed self-report measures on transition readiness, daily functioning, and mental health service use at baseline and 6-month follow-up. Twenty participants also completed qualitative interviews focused on understanding their experiences and satisfaction with the navigation service. Results indicate a significant increase in participants' mean transition readiness score and a decrease in the number of emergency department visits from baseline to the 6-month follow-up. However, there were no significant changes in mean functioning scores or self-reported mental health symptoms. The quantitative and qualitative findings converged, indicating overall high satisfaction with the navigation service, with the primary gap in the service being the lack of communication maintained with youth while in the program.