School Disengagement and Mental Health Service Intensity Need Among Clinically Referred Students Utilizing the interRAI Child and Youth Mental Health Assessment Instrument

TitleSchool Disengagement and Mental Health Service Intensity Need Among Clinically Referred Students Utilizing the interRAI Child and Youth Mental Health Assessment Instrument
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2021
AuthorsKlassen JA, Stewart SL, Lapshina N
JournalFrontiers in Psychiatry
Volume12
Date Published2021-December-06
Type of ArticleOriginal Research
ISBN Number1664-0640
Keywordsschool disengagement,resource intensity need,Referral reason,Mental Health,interRAI
Abstract

Although mental health challenges are widespread, impacting 1 in 5 children and youth, only 25% of these young people receive the required mental health supports. Unmet mental health needs are strongly associated with functional impairments including poor self-care, interpersonal challenges, and school difficulties among young people. School disengagement, or a student's lack of involvement in education through interest, curiosity, motivation, and active participation, is associated with a wide array of detrimental outcomes including chronic mental health difficulties, conduct and delinquent behaviors, criminal justice involvement, and unemployment in adolescence and adulthood. Disengagement observed within the school setting may be indicative of underlying mental health challenges and reflective of service intensity need. The current study extends the literature by examining the relationship between school disengagement and mental health service intensity need among 14,750 clinically referred students across elementary and secondary school utilizing the interRAI Child and Youth Mental Health instrument. Findings indicated that more than 25% of clinically referred students were at heighted risk for school disengagement and required high-intensity services. Further, mental health service intensity need was positively associated with risk of school disengagement among students, along with the specific reason for referral (i.e., psychiatric symptoms, harm to self, harm to others, or addiction or dependency), after controlling for sex and age. Implications of the findings are explored within the context of the school setting and future directions are suggested.

DOI10.3389/fpsyt.2021.690917
Link

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8685215/

Short TitleSchool disengagement and service need