Mental Health Literacy programmes prevent and support ongoing management of youth anxiety and depression: consultation and literature review

Abstract Background Enhancing young people's capacity to recognise, understand and manage emotional symptoms through mental health literacy (MHL) programmes may help attenuate the long-term burden of mental illness. This may be especially important in low-resource settings. We aimed to review the capacity of MHL programmes to prevent, support ongoing management, and reduce relapse of youth anxiety and depression. We explored both personal and contextual factors that could amplify their benefits, and through consultations with lived experience researchers, considered if and how these could be delivered in low-resource settings. Methods We systematically searched 6 databases for studies that evaluated the potential of MHL programmes to prevent, support ongoing management, and reduce relapse of youth anxiety and depression. We consulted young people and stakeholders on their perception of MHL programme delivery in low-resource countries/settings. Results We identified 17 relevant studies, covering a range of MHL programmes. Most MHL programmes targeted young people through educational settings. Teacher-delivered programs showed the clearest effects in improving recognition of anxiety/depression symptoms while programs supported by experts showed clearer effects on stigma reduction. Stakeholders highlighted the importance of MHL programmes and expressed possible barriers and solutions to implement them. Conclusion As young people are receptive to learning about mental health, it is critical to implement accessible MHL interventions early, especially in low-resource settings. Delivery by non-specialist practitioners in community settings could reflect one such strategy. Delivering these programmes may be a pre-requisite to understanding why and when individual resources are needed, bridging the gap in availability of mental health care.