Exploring patterns of interpersonal violence and mental health service complexity amongst treatment-seeking children and youth in Canada

The extant literature has documented the negative impacts of interpersonal violence on children's mental health, including increasing their need for intervention services. However, less is known about the relationship between interpersonal violence and service complexity. This study explores the associations between multiple forms of interpersonal violence, polyvictimization, and children's mental health service complexity. This study utilized de-identified routine care data from 59 community mental health agencies across Ontario, Canada, representing 18,701 children and youth ages four to 18 years old. This data represented assessments that were conducted between November 2012 and January 2019. Poisson regression models were used to examine the relationships between three forms of interpersonal violence (i.e., bullying, sexual violence, and physical violence), family functioning, placement in foster care, select demographic variables, and service complexity amongst children accessing mental healthcare services. All forms of interpersonal violence, polyvictimization, age, primary language spoken at home, history of foster care placement, and low levels of family functioning were associated with service complexity. Further, polyvictimization was associated with service complexity even when controlling for the other variables of interest. Findings revealed multiple service complexity predictors, including specific interpersonal victimizations, polyvictimization, and other risk factors. Implications for mental health service providers and organizations are discussed.