Project Title
Culturally Safe and Accessible Digital Mental Health Interventions for Newcomer Youth in Canada’s Asian Diasporic Communities
Project Leads
Rui Hou, Josephine Pui-Hing Wong, Alan Li, Kenneth Fung, Minhui Yang, Michael Butac
Objectives
This project aims to bring together mental health practitioners, decision-makers, Asian newcomer youth leaders and community stakeholders to dialogue and prioritize strategies that ensure access to effective and culturally safe digital mental health care among East, Southeast and South Asian newcomer youth in Ontario.
Research questions
(1) What is the essential need for effective digital mental health interventions for youth in racialized newcomer youth communities.(2) What are the essential elements of inclusive, effective, and innovative digital interventions for mental health promotion for racialized newcomer youth.
Background
In 2021, over 40% of immigrants to Canada were from Asia. Newcomer youth face many challenges that compromise their mental health, including sense of unbelonging, racism, language and cultural barriers in accessing health resources, settlement demands, and economic hardship. Asian LGBTQ+ newcomer youth face additional challenges of social exclusion, bullying, homophobia and transphobia. Digital mental health interventions are increasingly considered as effective and more accessible responses to addressing mental health problems. During the pandemic, the Canadian mental health system expedited digital mental health services. Evidence shows that youth regularly seek online mental health support; however, racialized newcomers encounter financial, cultural and language barriers in accessing digital mental health resources.
Methods
It consists of two components: (1) a scoping review on effective digital interventions and resources for Asian youth in Canada and elsewhere; (2) community dialogues on digital mental health resources for diverse Asian newcomer youth, which includes (i) sharing results of the scoping review; (ii) engaging stakeholders to determine the need of effective digital mental health interventions for youth in their communities; (iii) co-identifying the essential elements of an inclusive, effective and innovative digital intervention on mental health promotion for Asian newcomer youth; (iv) establishing a partnership with an action plan to engage youth leaders and relevant stakeholders to secure an operating research grant to co-develop and pilot an innovative, accessible, inclusive and effective digital intervention on youth mental health promotion.
Current Status
Secured Grant Funding, Working on REB application
Expected completion
Oct 2024
Co-researchers & Partners
Toronto Metropolitan University, Hong Fook Mental Health Association, Settlement Assistance &Family Support Services, Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention, Community Alliance for Accessible Treatment, Asian Community AIDS Services
Funding
CIHR Planning and Dissemination Grant
Key words
Digital Mental Health, Technology, Community Engagement, Newcomer Youth, Asian immigrants