New research shows that changing how youth mental health care is delivered can help more young people get faster support.
A national project led by McGill University found that redesigning youth mental health services can reduce wait times and improve access to care. The ACCESS Open Minds program began in 2014 to close gaps in mental health services, especially for Indigenous, remote, and underserved communities.
The program focused on making services easier to reach, more welcoming to youth, and respectful of different cultures. It worked by changing how clinics, schools, and youth centers provide care.
Accessing mental health care usually requires a professional referral, which can be slow and discourage young people. ACCESS Open Minds removed this step, allowing youth to seek help on their own. It also set goals to evaluate youth within three days and start treatment within 30 days—targets few public services meet.
Over four years, nearly 8,000 youth aged 11 to 25 used the program at 11 sites. Most were seen within three days, far quicker than the usual wait of 45 days to over a year. Referrals increased by 10% every six months.
At the downtown Montreal site for homeless youth, the number of young people seeking help grew dramatically. Even with higher demand, the team added only two staff members but still saw most youth within 72 hours, said Srividya Iyer, lead author and Canada Research Chair in Youth Mental Health.
The project also improved how staff worked together, trained employees, and coordinated care. Most changes used existing resources.
Of the 16 communities served, five were in Quebec. In Nunavik, the team worked with Indigenous youth and Elders to create a welcoming youth hub in a converted garage, where teens could connect and fix hunting gear.
In Montreal, homeless youth received full care through partnerships with shelters, clinics, and even a circus. The program included artistic activities with Cirque Hors Piste to help young people express themselves and feel cared for beyond their symptoms.
The ACCESS Open Minds model helped shape Quebec’s Aire Ouverte network and similar projects across Canada.
Researchers are now looking at bigger factors affecting mental health, like climate anxiety, housing costs, unstable jobs, and the effects of AI. They stress that these root causes must be addressed to improve youth mental health.
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