Impact of a Global Child Mental Health Observership Program: Participant Evaluation, Perceptions, and Outcomes
- PDF / 207,547 Bytes
- 5 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 88 Downloads / 190 Views
IN BRIEF REPORT
Impact of a Global Child Mental Health Observership Program: Participant Evaluation, Perceptions, and Outcomes Patricia Ibeziako 1
&
Colleen Barrett 1 & Monique Ribeiro 1 & Kevin Tsang 1
Received: 17 February 2020 / Accepted: 5 October 2020 # Academic Psychiatry 2020
Abstract Objective The authors describe the participant outcomes and global impact of a structured international observership program in child and adolescent mental health (CAMH) at a United States (US) pediatric academic center. Methods The quality improvement phase of the observership program was conducted for 2 years and included 12 participants from 9 different countries. Observers utilized a question guide to describe their clinical and academic experiences in the US in relation to their countries. Each observer completed a program evaluation at the end of the observership, and provided progress reports ranging 6–20 months following completion of the program. Results Observers valued their experience in the program with overall high evaluation ratings. Observers described major differences and similarities as well as strengths and weaknesses of the US system of care in comparison with their countries’ system of care, with perspectives provided on available therapies (pharmacological and non-pharmacological), multidisciplinary treatment, and the role of culture. All observers returned to their countries upon completion of the program and demonstrated significant CAMH clinical and academic productivity with publications, leadership roles, training, education, clinical care, and advocacy in their countries after participation in the observership. Conclusion The outcomes of this program demonstrate that the development and implementation of an onsite educational observership experience in an academic setting have significant potential to build international collaboration and partnerships, in order to meet the underserved mental health needs of children and adolescents globally. Such experiences promote professional growth for all involved and advance CAMH care and advocacy worldwide. Keywords Observership . Global mental health . Child mental health training
The value of cross-cultural training is well-documented for numerous facets of medicine [1]. However, despite the fact that mental illness in children and adolescents is increasingly being recognized as a global public health issue, child psychiatry is lagging behind medicine in terms of offering international training programs that address global child mental health educational needs [2, 3]. There are very few educational programs targeted specifically for internationally based providers to expose them to systems of care for child and adolescent mental health (CAMH) in the United States (US), in an effort to build child mental health capacity globally. The cur* Patricia Ibeziako [email protected] 1
Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
rent paper describes the impact of a unique observership program designed to provide int
Data Loading...
