Browsing by Author "Newton, Amanda S."

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    Co-designing discharge communication interventions for mental health visits to the pediatric emergency department: a mixed-methods study
    (2024-06-21) Ali, Amber Z.; Wright, Bruce; Curran, Janet A.; Fawcett-Arsenault, Joelle; Newton, Amanda S.
    Abstract Background Discharge communication is essential to convey information regarding the care provided and follow-up plans after a visit to a hospital emergency department (ED), but it can be lacking for visits for pediatric mental health crises. Our objective was to co-design and conduct usability testing of new discharge communication interventions to improve pediatric mental health discharge communication. Methods The study was conducted in two phases using experience-based co-design (EBCD). In phase 1 (Sep 2021 to Jan 2022), five meetings were conducted with a team of six parents and two clinicians to co-design new ED discharge communication interventions for pediatric mental health care. Thematic analysis was used to identify patterns in team discussions and participant feedback related to discharge communication improvement and the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behavior (COM-B) model was used to identify strategies to support the delivery of the new interventions. After meeting five, team members completed the Public and Patient Engagement Evaluation Tool (PPEET) to evaluate the co-design experience. In phase 2 (Apr to Jul 2022), intervention usability and satisfaction were evaluated by a new group of parents, youth aged 16–24 years, ED physicians, and nurses (n = 2 of each). Thematic analysis was used to identify usability issues and a validated 5-point Likert survey was used to evaluate user satisfaction. Evaluation results were used by the co-design team to finalize the interventions and delivery strategies. Results Two discharge communication interventions were created: a brochure for families and clinicians to use during the ED visit, and a text-messaging system for families after the visit. There was high satisfaction with engagement in phase 1 (overall mean PPEET score, 4.5/5). In phase 2, user satisfaction was high (mean clinician score, 4.4/5; mean caregiver/youth score, 4.1/5) with both interventions. Usability feedback included in the final intervention versions included instructions on intervention use and ensuring the text-messaging system activates within 12–24 h of discharge. Conclusions The interventions produced by this co-design initiative have the potential to address gaps in current discharge practices. Future testing is required to evaluate the impact on patients, caregivers, and health care system use after the ED visit.
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    The genetic architecture of youth anxiety: a study protocol
    (2024-02-23) McAusland, Laina; Burton, Christie L.; Bagnell, Alexa; Boylan, Khrista; Hatchard, Taylor; Lingley-Pottie, Patricia; Al Maruf, Abdullah; McGrath, Patrick; Newton, Amanda S.; Rowa, Karen; Schachar, Russell J.; Shaheen, S-M; Stewart, Sam; Arnold, Paul D.; Crosbie, Jennifer; Mattheisen, Manuel; Soreni, Noam; Stewart, S. E.; Meier, Sandra
    Abstract Background Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric problems among Canadian youth and typically have an onset in childhood or adolescence. They are characterized by high rates of relapse and chronicity, often resulting in substantial impairment across the lifespan. Genetic factors play an important role in the vulnerability toward anxiety disorders. However, genetic contribution to anxiety in youth is not well understood and can change across developmental stages. Large-scale genetic studies of youth are needed with detailed assessments of symptoms of anxiety disorders and their major comorbidities to inform early intervention or preventative strategies and suggest novel targets for therapeutics and personalization of care. Methods The Genetic Architecture of Youth Anxiety (GAYA) study is a Pan-Canadian effort of clinical and genetic experts with specific recruitment sites in Calgary, Halifax, Hamilton, Toronto, and Vancouver. Youth aged 10–19 (n = 13,000) will be recruited from both clinical and community settings and will provide saliva samples, complete online questionnaires on demographics, symptoms of mental health concerns, and behavioural inhibition, and complete neurocognitive tasks. A subset of youth will be offered access to a self-managed Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy resource. Analyses will focus on the identification of novel genetic risk loci for anxiety disorders in youth and assess how much of the genetic risk for anxiety disorders is unique or shared across the life span. Discussion Results will substantially inform early intervention or preventative strategies and suggest novel targets for therapeutics and personalization of care. Given that the GAYA study will be the biggest genomic study of anxiety disorders in youth in Canada, this project will further foster collaborations nationally and across the world.