Our roles are not at ease

The work of engaging a youth advisory council in a mental health services delivery organization

Bibliographic Data

ID19506923
AuthorsEugenia Canas (0000-0003-3979-7603, Faculty of Information & Media Studies Western University London ON Canada, corresponding author), C Nadine Wathen (0000-0003-2646-2919, Faculty of Information & Media Studies Western University London ON Canada), Nadine Wathen, Hélène Berman (Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing Western University London ON Canada), Paula Reaume‐Zimmer (Mental Health and Addiction Services Bluewater Health and Canadian Mental Health Association Lambton Kent ON Canada), Srividya N Iyer (0000-0001-5367-9086, ACCESS Open Minds (Pan‐Canadian Youth Mental Health Services Research Network) Douglas Research Centre Montréal QC Canada, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume24
Issue5
Pages1618-1625
Publication date2021-10-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHealth Expectations (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1369-6513 • E-ISSN: 1369-7625
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/hex.13302
PMID34240785
OpenAlexW3178432422
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited27

OBJECTIVES: There is growing policy impetus for including youth voices in health services research and health system reform. This article examines the perspectives of professionals in a mental healthcare organization charged with engaging young people as advisors in service transformation. METHODS: An institutional ethnography of a youth mental health services organization in Ontario, Canada, was conducted. Fieldwork consisted of twelve months of observation of meetings, interviews with youth advisors and adult service providers, with subsequent text analysis of engagement training and policy materials. The present article reports data from six adult professionals and related field observations. RESULTS: Service providers' efforts to engage youth were observed in three areas: a) supporting youth's development as advisors, b) retaining and deepening youth participation while waiting for organizational change and c) embedding relationships between youth and adults at various levels within the system of care. This work denotes existing tensions between the values and ideals of youth engagement and the everyday demands of services delivery. CONCLUSION: In this setting, a fundamental dimension of this work consisted of negotiating tensions between the policy enthusiasm for engagement and its realization in a health services context. In describing these contextual challenges, we outline implications for consideration by other youth mental health services. Engagement efforts that are authentic and sustained require resources and flexibility, and leadership commitment to instil service users' perspectives throughout multiple levels within the organization

Business · Enthusiasm · Mental health · Negotiation · Political science · Public relations · Service delivery framework · Sociology · Youth engagement · Adolescent and Pediatric Healthcare · Medicine · Mental Health and Patient Involvement · Nursing · Participatory Visual Research Methods · Psychology · Social Psychology

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Open DOIOpen Access