Developing a School-Based Risk and Resilience Network to Implement the Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) Program with Texas Adolescents

Abstract BackgroundDespite the school setting presenting an ideal place to address youth depression and suicide prevention, there continues to be a need for innovative and effective school-based mental health interventions. MethodsThe University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center’s Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care developed a collaborative school-based prevention effort, the Risk and Resilience Network (RRN), to develop and test approaches to aid in enhancing resiliency factors, prevention of depression and suicide, and improve early identification and care linkage for youth with depression and/or suicidality. The aims of RRN were: 1) to build collaborative partnerships with schools and youth-focused community organizations to study risk and resilience in youth, and 2) in collaboration with school partners and youth-focused community organizations, to engage school stakeholders and families in developing and testing innovative strategies for addressing depression and suicide prevention in schools. To engage schools in the RRN, a cornerstone, evidenced-based program was selected (Youth Aware of Mental Health, YAM, program) to offer to schools as part of an implementation project. This report uses the RE-AIM framework to describe the rationale, design, implementation process, and YAM program evaluation results from the initial years of a school-based network focused on depression and suicide prevention.ResultsDescriptive data are presented, using the RE-AIM framework, on the first three academic years of the RRN and YAM program partnerships (2016-2017, 2017-2018, and 2018-2019), which included 24 RRN partnerships. Eleven (73.3%) out of the 15 school systems who agreed to RRN partnerships agreed to implement the YAM program, resulting in 14,061 students who participated in YAM.ConclusionsThe RRN is a collaborative school-based prevention effort to develop and test approaches to aid in enhancing resiliency factors, preventing of depression and suicide, and improving early identification and care linkage for youth with depression and/or suicidality. Trial Registration: Not applicable